The It School
by Riz-I
Summary: Ladies and gentlemen... Welcome to the It School. Just remember one thing; This is The It School... And this is where it's at.
1. This Is Where It's At

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The It School  
Chapter One:: This Is Where It's At  
Written By:: Riz-I  
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**A/N: I should finish something before starting something new tbh. Whatever. Sue me. As mentioned in the summary; this was inspired by TheCherryOnTop by ohwhatsherface. Go read it. Seriously. I've never been too keen on writing a high school fanfic 'cause they always end up cliché… but if you can make the clichés as good as that… seriously, who gives a damn? Obviously it's not the same as TheCherryOnTop (like I could be that good)… but it does have certain similarities... not the Gossip Radio… but the Gossip spreading thing. Anyways, hope you enjoy it.

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'_Good morning my lovely It Schoolers. Your morning alarm and your early morning cup of Gossip Coffee. I know some of you just can't wake up without it. Well, it seems we've finally got some results on the new 6__th__ Formers front. Yeah. You Year 12's are going to be joined by Shikamaru Nara and Kiba Inuzuka at first period today. Apparently they've both got reputations… I've yet to find out what exactly these reputations are. Chill out though. As you all know, Lady Luck tends to- you know, luck out! I'll score the information by the end of the day. New starts? Pfft. Do you really want to hang with someone who could make Kabuto-sensei seem cool? I mean- no offense but… socks and sandals? So last... No. Socks and sandals just never work. Especially not with three quarter leg dungarees. Kabuto-sensei; Lady Luck recommends you get yourself a mirror and a stylist. Whatever. Be nice to the new guys everyone. At least at first. We wouldn't want them to end up like last time's scholarship students. I mean, Cherry Blossom, seriously. Get some self respect, 'kay? Then maybe get some friends. And that Sora? Where even is he? Prizes to anyone who can find out where he went for me... And remember everyone. This is the It School… And this is where it's at. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss.'_

_-x-  
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I _hate _Lady Luck. I actually, passionately _despise _her _and _her stupid Radio Gossip.

Guess it's technically my fault though. After all, it was my choice to take the scholarship exam for this stupid school in Year 7… and it was my choice not to leave at the end of Year 11 like any other smart person would. No. I decided to hold my head high and prepare myself for rejection in the harsh, cruel world and remind myself that when I'm older _I'll _be the one laughing and all of the others will be begging me fo-

Am I kidding you with this?

Because it sure as hell isn't fooling me. These kids _own the world_. Well, at least their parents do; and they've been sent here to basically just mess about until it's their turn.

There's only two ways of getting in to this school:

a) Have a gorgeous mommy and a mega rich daddy to make a very generous donation and buy your way in.

b) Be one of two scholarship students to get in… bearing in mind the exam is only once every five years.

Two guesses which one I am. And the first one doesn't count.

-x-

People who are in category (a) do not associate with people in category (b) unless the person _in _category (b) is extremely cool.

Which I am. But after spilling a chocolate milkshake on Ino Yamanaka on my second day she made damn sure nobody ever found this out.

Now I'm known as 'Spiller'. Or as Lady Luck likes to call me… 'Cherry Blossom'. Guessed my name yet? If you haven't; you're actually a moron...

Or Naruto…

Just in case you are- my name's Sakura: and I go to the It School.

And where is the It School I hear you ask.

That's easy.

Hell on Earth.

-x-

I'm in the Year 12 Form Room. There's only one form in each year because hell, with entrance criteria _that _selective; it sure is _hard_ as hell to get in to the school in the first place.

The form room is split in half. I am currently sitting alone in 'Loser Half'.

Due to the rather _selective _criteria, there are only 17 people in the class (it _should _have been 18 but Sora, the other scholarship student, left in Year 9 after the whole 'Sasuke-and-Naruto-go-after-the-scholarship-kid-because-they're-bored' thing). So with the two new people, it'll bring our total up to 19.

Yeah. I'm great at maths.

Anyway, as I was saying. The 'Loser Half' is the half of the classroom I have all to myself. The 'It Half' is where everybody else sits. Do I really need to explain why this divide? If you say yes I may just text Lady Luck some false gossip about you to announce to the world- though somehow she always seems to know…

-x-

Oh. I can hear Kakashi-sensei's voice (yeah, technically it _should _be Hatake-sensei, but he says he doesn't want to get mixed up with his dad, a bit of a George _**W **_Bush thing going on here perhaps?) coming from outside.

New boys.

The footsteps from outside are audible as everyone turns silently to face the door.

The door handle turns oh so slowly.

Everyone holds their breath as the door swings open.

A mutt, a pineapple and a paedophile stride into the classroom.

Well, the paedophile strides. The mutt bounds and the pineapple just kind of slouches- he looks like he's sleepwalking.

As Kakashi-sensei takes his seat at the front, the mutt and the pineapple take in the scene in front of them. Where they go now could decide their fate for the rest of their lives at this school, however, unlike me, they've only got two years not seven to put up with.

-x-

Everyone seems to still be holding that breath.

The mutt grins, baring unnaturally pointy canines and walks straight towards the It Crowd.

The pineapple, however, slides into the seat next to me.

I gape at him. "What are you _doing?_"

"Sitting."

"Yeah. But why _there?_"

"Because I want to."

"I can see that. But _why?_"

"Because I want to."

"They're going to eat you." I point at the It Crowd, one of whom (Naruto, who else?) Kiba is currently arm wrestling.

"They're troublesome."

"I wouldn't tell _them _that if I were you."

"Like I said. They're troublesome."

-x-

Suddenly, his head smacks down on the table. Alarmed, I jab him (hard) on the cheek. He jumps and then lifts his head up, groaning and rubbing his cheek. "Ouch! What was that for?"

"I thought you'd fainted or something. Don't just _smack _your face on the table."

"I was _sleeping_!"

"Oh. Okay then."

He rests his head on his arms again and I suddenly get the distinct feeling of eyes burning into me. I look up and see –is that _fire- _in Ino Yamanaka's eyes. She leans over and mutters something to Sasuke who turns to me and smirks. He listens as Ino continues speaking to him, and then nods. He notices me looking at him and looks _right into my eyes _and gives me that irritating smirk again.

And then he starts walking over to me.

Okay...

-x-

I have never been less than 10 or so feet away from Sasuke Uchiha at all times. I'd put our current proximity at about, erm, 3?

2?

1?

A half?

Oh sugar! He's standing right above me.

I look up and am about to ask what he wants when-

-x-

"Mmmmpf!!" I blurt. What. The. HELL!!!!

I reach back a hand and then suddenly *SMACK*

Sasuke straightens up and, showing the red mark on his right proudly, turns his head back to look at Ino. "That's ten thousand by the end of the week, Yamanaka." He smirks at my shocked, bright red face and then leans in and whispers in my ear. "That didn't mean anything, Spiller. But since you just helped me win ten thousand. I guess I'll say thanks." Without another glance at me- he walks back to 'his half'.

Because let's face it.

Sasuke Uchiha _owns _the 'It Half'.

-x-

'_My, my, my. What is this I've just been getting beeped about? Mr Unobtainable has just been- obtained? Wow. According to recent information, Mr U simply waltzed over to none other than CHERRY BLOSSOM (girl, I am _sorry _for slating you this morning, you _must _have something if you got _HIM _after you… mind sharing your secrets?) and kissed her. Is this romance I see BLOSSOMING before me? Ooh. Message from the man of the blooming couple himself. Ahh. Well ladies, gentlemen… and fangirls. You'll be sad/glad to hear that our favourite bachelor is most certainly still a bachelor. Miss Y however now needs to get her hands on ten thousand dollars or pounds, I love how both work here, by the end of the week. Shouldn't be a problem for her. If daddy won't give her it, there's many a pubescent man in the school that will. And as far as I know- quite a few teachers too. Better keep a closer eye on your man, Kurenai. Updates on the new meat as well; it would seem Kiba Inuzuka is the newest member of the It Crowd. He's a _babe _if this picture is anything to go by. I fully expect to be making more updates on him very soon. Shikamaru Nara, on the other hand, is hot enough to give Sasuke a run for his money. Careful honey, you're crown would have been in serious jeopardy there… but it would seem that Nara has decided to keep clear of the It Crowd. Wow. Is the apocalypse here already? Keep an eye out for falling ceiling tiles- Oh my. _Another _message. The It Crowd is really on a roll this morning!! It would seem, despite his questionable clique choice, new boy Nara may still have a chance… I've just got two 'It Claims' in for him. The Flower and The Game have both set their eyes on the soon to be startled Deer. I really _have _lucked out this morning. Keep it coming ladies and gents. After all… this _IS _the It School. And as we all know… _THIS IS WHERE IT'S AT!!! 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss.'

-x-

How _fast _does shit _travel _in this school?

What a stupid question.

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**A/N: Chapter One. Like I said, if you haven't read TheCherryOnTop- leave, RIGHT NOW, and go read it. It's truly amazing! BEFORE YOU DO THOUGH... I'd really like to know what you all think of this fic. Because you know... I love you all. Each and every last one of you. And your comments mean the world to me. Lovely praise and constructive criticism alike. So let me know whether this fic's worth it. 'Kay? ^_^ Love, Riz..  
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	2. This Is Why We Whisper

**The It School  
Chapter Two:: This Is Why We Whisper  
Written By:: Riz-I**

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"Why is everybody looking at you?" Shikamaru yawns as he asks. I don't really blame him- since Lady Luck's latest announcement, people are literally just _skidding to a halt _when they see me.

How does everybody know 'Cherry Blossom' is me? This is why Gossip Blog secret identities never work, see, you can just read what was written at a later date and be all 'OH!! I know who did that- so that means _(insert GossipBlog name here) _is _actually (insert real name here)_.' People aren't as stupid as they seem. Some midget new Year Seven stops to gawk at me and his friend ends up walking straight into his back…

Clearly.

Like I was saying- thinking, whatever- you can't really keep identities a secret. The Deer? That's obviously _Shika_maru. The Flower? Well, that's easy. Ino Yamanaka. So called because Yamanaka Flowers is _the _place to go to get flower arrangements; a bouquet of roses from them costs more than my Apartment. The Game? Temari. So called because… well; I don't really know why. She just is.

"So, where are we headed?" I look at Shikamaru who is now scratching his head _and _yawning at the same time.

I shake my head at him. "Don't follow me."

He raises an eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"You've been 'It-Claimed'." I peer into his dark, sceptical eyes, "_Twice!_" I hold up two fingers and spin around to walk away. He catches my wrist.

Okay. Wrist. Burning. Pineapple Guy. _Claimed._

_Twice._

* * *

He pulls me close and I'm sure he's going to confess. Oh _please_ let Lady Luck report this. For _once in your damn gossipy life report something _useful! That said- what kind of a guy confesses after knowing somebody for about ten minutes? Oh my God. What if he's some sort of pervert- Lady Luck mentioned the two newbies having a reputation… What if Shikamaru's is 'axe-murderer/ pervert'?!

"You were about to step on an ant hill." He shoves me to the side and lets go. He starts walking ahead while I stand, amazed, and rub my wrist. He suddenly stops, turns his head and tilts his head to the side, "By the way. What's an It-Claim?"

I gape at Shikamaru. Well, _of course_ he doesn't know what an It-Claim is.

Poor boy.

* * *

I walk over to him, pat him on the shoulder and then begin leading him to a slightly more secluded area. As we walk, I talk. "You remember those people in Form? The ones who you say are 'troublesome'?"

"Hn." He grunts. I take that as a yes.

"They're the It Crowd." At this, I am given a cynical look. "No. I'm not joking. You've heard of The F4 from Hana Yori Dango, right?"

How could he not have? _Everyone's _heard of it. As I expected, he nods his head.

"Well, the It Crowd is sort of like that. Except there's 16 of them."

"So- they own the school?"

"Yep."

"And an It-Claim would be…" his face clears for a second. "When one of them claim something?"

Well, he had to be a genius to pass the scholarship exam. "Pretty much. Just… not some_thing. _Some_one._"

We sit down under the large oak tree near the bike sheds. I lay down my blazer, sit down and lean back on the tree. Shikamaru just lies straight down on the grass. "So, who claimed me? And how do you know?"

"Ino; she's the one with the blonde hair, blue eyes and killer body and Temari; the other one with blonde hair, blue eyes and a killer body." Shikamaru smirks slightly.

"Shame really," he sighs, "Since my type is dark hair, black eyes and slightly chubby."

_Ding-Dong, loves. My Gossip senses are tingling. Well, not really, it's more like some kind of a field day with Gossip Pollen being THROWN my way... I have news for The Game and The Flower. Seems you both are going to have to do a bit of changing if The Deer is the man for you. For I have it here that his type is not the thin blonde bombshell, but rather the voluptuous dark haired siren. Seems the innocent blonde & blue eyed combination isn't what's going to win over the first ever non It Crowd male to get an It- Claim, oh, my bad, he got two. I'd better hurry on those background checks. Unless somebody would like to come forward with something? No? Alrighty then. I'll have to come up with some sort of gift for one 'Ramen King Of The It School Kingdom' who tells me that Sora , after leaving us in Year Nine, committed suicide in the Summer leading up to Year Ten. Let us all take a moment to mourn his loss… Okay. Moment over. If he wanted to just _give up _, more fool him. Because we at the It School aren't quitters, are we? Remember lovely's, we here are the It School… And this is where it's at.0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss._

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I look at Shikamaru and then point towards the speaker on the wall of the bike shed, "And that, '_Mr Deer'_, is how I know."

"What was that?"

I sigh and begin tugging up lumps of grass, "_That _was Lady Luck on GossipRadio. Our. School's. Very. Own. Gossip. Radio." I accent each word with a tug.

The boy puts his arms behind his head and whistles. I take this as a sign to continue. "I mean, if it was a gossip _blog _at least it's _optional_. You don't _have _to read the pointless shit about other people. But there are speakers in the _dorms_!! She is the Morning Alarm!! You have to listen!! And she knows _everything. Even the stuff nobody texts her about!!! How?!_" I realise that I've pulled up all the grass in the little spot in front of me and am currently clawing up bits of dirt. "Ew." I begin trying to scrape the mud out.

"Maybe the speakers are two-way."

"What?" I stop scraping.

"I said, maybe the speakers are two way. That's how she knows everything."

Now there's a thought…

The bell rings.

"What lesson have you got next?" I ask, expecting him to pull out his Planner. I should have guessed Mr Genius would have memorised his Timetable already.

"Biology with Kabuto in the Leaf Building. What about you?"

"Chemistry with Asuma in the Fire Building . Guess I'll see you at Lunch."

"Yeah. I guess." He yawns once again and then heads towards his lesson.

* * *

I stretch out, slide my blazer back on and pick up my bag. "Oy! Spiller." I roll my eyes and spin, ready to face whoever it is; "_What?_" I growl.

A grinning Naruto Uzumaki greets me. "Hey!"

I just stand and gaze at the hyperactive blond teen, he's pretty good looking I guess- not a patch on his best friend, 'The-Glacial-One-Who-Kisses-For-Money', but still, he's not bad. I try not to say stupid things, I really do. But they just come out. "Is your hair supposed to be that canary coloured?"

"YEAH!! Well, it's supposed to be egg-yolk colour. You know, like egg ramen. But the guy put in a bit too much gold." He grins as I realise that to someone like Naruto- who has roughly the IQ of a bowl of egg ramen- my question had been perfectly plausible.

You'd think I'd say something normal next. But my brain wasn't quite done. "Why are you speaking to me, Egg Boy?"

"Because I wanted to ask you something," he pauses to scratch his head and grin moronically at me, "Do you want to go out sometime?"

True to form, my brain/mouth filter failed yet again. "Yes!! Are you kidding me?!" So much for playing hard-to-get to reel 'em in…

"Really?!" He grinned. "No joke? You'll really go out with me?!"

The normal part (no matter how miniscule it may be)of my brain kicked in right about here. "Of course not!" Naruto's face fell. "Come on! You can't need the money _that _much. It's not like _you're _here on scholarship." I almost laugh at the thought of Naruto 'One-Plus-One-Is-Eleven' Uzumaki getting in on Scholarship.

He looks at me, dumbfounded. "What money?"

"Ino's paying you, right? To wind me up? Ask me out? Get me to say yes? Then you can all laugh at me and whatever?"

"Huh?" His astounded face makes me want to punch him. "Sakura, you're really weird. Why would I do anything _Ino _says?"

"You mean-"

Naruto grins, "I really _do _want to go out with you!! So, you will, won't you?!"

I glance at my watch. Bloody hell! I'm late. And my lesson is with Asuma… who's going to make me scrape off the chewing gum from under the desks as a punishment... I look at the grinning (just _slightly_ moronic) boy in front of me. I roll my eyes. "Fine."

"SCORE!! Okay. Meet me at the Dorm Common Room at seven, 'kay?" (Okay, scrat that, _extremely moronic _boy).

"Whatever." I turn and start walking towards the Leaf Building.

Did that just happen?

_

* * *

Today this could be… the greatest day of our lives! And there go the timeless words of Take That. Well, maybe not _your _lives, but most definitely it could be _mine. _How much gossip have I got for you today? It seems the U Boys are planning something. Both missed their first classes after break and I know for a fact one of the U Boys has planned a date tonight. I also know for a fact that while they were plotting in what they considered to be the 'Privacy' of the Men's Toilets, the words "Spiller" and "Ruin" and "Destruction" and "Ramen" were mentioned. With any _number _of even more suspicious words in between. But I'll leave that to tomorrow. I have the feeling something big is on the horizon… Now then. A little Personal Housekeeping. _Don't _text me Personal Messages to read out. I really don't care if Karin Baby-Doll loves Suigetsu Honey-Bunch. Now, if Baby-Doll and Honey-Bunch were to be caught doing the dirty behind the bike sheds by say, the other U Boy… well, now _that _would interest me. I'm telling you now, Lady Luck only deals in Gossip. Because you know, every roll of the dice turns out something new. Especially here at the It School… because this is where it's at!! 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss._

* * *

There are times when I wish I were stupid.

But I'm not.

'The U Boys' are Naruto _Uzumaki _and Sasuke _Uchiha_.

And if there are four words you don't want to see together where _those two _are concerned, they are; 'Spiller. Ruin. Destruction and Ramen'.

Especially if you know for a fact that you are 'Spiller'.

And that you are going out with one of the 'U Boys' later that night.

And that something is going to happen to you.

Something involving; ruin, destruction and ramen.

So seriously, what _possessed _me to come meet Naruto at the Common Room at seven?

And _why_ did I wear my best jeans?

The ones that make my ass look bootylicious?

And why, when Naruto just asked me if it was okay if we gave Sasuke a lift did I say 'Yes, why not? The more the merrier!'?

You want to know why?

Because I; Sakura Haruno… am an _idiot._

* * *

Don't judge me, okay? I mean, when I went back to my dorms that night, I _totally _planned on plugging into my iPod, doing my homework and then just falling asleep. But when I put it on Shuffle; what song should start playing but _'You Know I'm No Good', Amy Winehouse_?! And I decided that, you know what, if I was going to be a social reject for the rest of my life, I may as well get some pay-back for all my suffering.

And that's why I came down here. In my best jeans.

To teach the 'U Brothers' a lesson.

And so what if I'm _(_just _slightly_) a sucker for a pretty face.

I mean, _come on_…

Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha have two of the _prettiest _faces on the planet… Seriously.

* * *

The next time I make a stupid plan after listening to a song on my iPod, would somebody please take me to the side and say to me, "Sakura, this is a stupid plan you have concocted after listening to a song on your iPod. Don't do it because it will only result in you screwing yourself into the dirt."?

I'm just about ready to crawl into bed and lick my wounds and relive the horrors of that evening under cover of the peace and private of my own blanket when:

_Anybody ever seen the Grey's Anatomy episode where Meredith thinks she's going to die and so doesn't want to get out bed that morning because she just _knows _she's going to die? And then later that day she winds up in a bomb blast? You see, this morning… I had that. Except the _complete _opposite. When I woke up I couldn't _wait _to get out of bed because I just _knew _it was going to be a great day. And guess what? I have for you the _biggest _scoops of the _year. _Hell, I'm going to go ahead and say this is THE BEST GOSSIP I HAVE EVER REPORTED ON GOSSIP RADIO!! Bet that got your attention. Heh heh. So, darlings, here goes… First of all, I got the deets on Shikamaru Nara and Kiba Inuzuka. We'll start with Kiba then, shall we? Star football player at his previous school, great with animals and plans on going into Veterinary Science after his two years here. He's pretty good looking and is, despite his pre-dating, typical 'player' behaviour, a loyal boyfriend… Shame he can't pick girlfriends of the same calibre. Coming here appears to be more of an escape route than due to pure ambition. Sorry Kiba, hun. But the stuff I have on you is just too good. Hear this all ,I have it that young Kiba moved here due to his ex cheating on him with his best friends. Yes. You heard that right. Friend-S. Plural. It seems if you're after puppy love with our cute little future vet- you're going to have to give him a heap load of TLC. Now we come to the _real _juicy stuff. Shikamaru Nara. Why didn't you tell us babe? You know. That your alias in the working world is, listen closely everybody. Because you are currently sharing a School with none other than… G.M Nara. Genius-Model Nara. The one who single handedly re-launched Nara Corps. And made it the third biggest company in the business world today. After Uchiha and Hyuuga Corps. Obviously. Not to mention one of the hottest guys on the planet. I see why you decided to keep your hair tied up. Seems The Flower and The Game both have to step it up- again. But compared to what I'm going to reveal now, G.M Nara's presence amongst us is _nothing..._ It would seem The Sex and the Fox both showed our Little Miss H-Blossom a pretty good time earlier today. Well. It was good for them. Maybe not so much for Miss H. The three of them took a little trip to Ichiraku Ramen where I just so happened to be, and you'll never believe what I saw unravel before my eyes. And what secrets I heard whispered in the booth-next-booth; the U Brothers have concocted a plan so cunning I'm half tempted to spill it all to Headmaster Sarutobi; but unlike Miss H- I'm not a Spiller. Anyway, this plan, should it come to fruition, could catapult the It School to unprecedented fame and fortune. Yes. Fame and fortune so large even The Sex- who most definitely has no lack of either- decided to cash in. The only problem is; the U Brothers need the unfaltering support of Little Miss H-Blossom. However, being the good, virgin girl that she is, neither The Fox's proposition of free ramen for a year nor The Sex's offer of- well, what do you think?- could persuade her to participate. I believe her exact words were: 'If we get caught, you guys are going to blame the whole thing on me, aren't you?' to which, after The Fox replied 'Of course.' She got up and stormed out. Might I say, Miss H, your jeans are most flattering on the ass, do text me and let me know where they're from. Heh. All I can say is, I'd be with her on this- because this plan could potentially go in two directions, and there's no turning back should either happen. Direction One: As I previously mentioned, the school and it's students could become the most talked about the world over. Or, Direction Two: and this is, at the moment, more likely. The school could become a Z-List School overnight, resulting in every single student and their _entire _families (and I mean _entire _families; grandparents, cousins, uncles, aunts, even distant-cousins-however-many-times-removed) could lose their _entire _fortunes. Overnight. Think long and hard about this one boys. And Miss H. Do not. Under _any _circumstances, give in without giving due consideration to the fact that many students have private security at their disposal. Security that would do their bidding even if they were to say, lose their fortunes overnight. Just, a, you know, friendly warning. So, everyone, goodnight. Look forward to your Gossip Alarm tomorrow morning. And remember ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls and of course, the It Crowd… This is the It School. And this is where it's at. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss._

* * *

There's a soft tap on my door. I groan, tiptoe over, and peer through the peephole. Sighing, I unlock the door. "What?!" I all but growl.

"Thought you could use a friend."

"And why would you think that, Pineapple?" I raise a sceptical eyebrow at him.

"Okay. You got me. I can sense a large group of hormonal girls rushing towards my dorm room. I want to shack up in yours for tonight. You told me at Lunch that you had a single."

I look at the face of G.M- sorry, Shikamaru Nara in the moonlight. I sigh. "Whatever. Come in."

I lock the door and turn around to find Shikamaru strewn across the small couch I crammed in here. He has one arm bent with his forearm across his eyes and the other one grazing the carpet. Sensing me watching him, he removes the arm and turns his head to gaze right at me. "So tell me," he smirked, "What's this grand plan?"

And boy do I ever _tell _him. And by the time I'm done… That little _smirk _of his is nowhere to be seen. He's sitting up and staring at me with shock-widened eyes. "S- Sakura." He chokes. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?" I gaze right back into his eyes, and I have the feeling mine are more resigned than anything else. I tell him the words that our-lucky-lady-of-unrelenting-blabbermouth-syndrome couldn't possibly have heard. The ones Sasuke Uchiha had whispered in my ear when he grabbed my arm when I was storming out the front door of the Ichiraku's; "Hey Spiller. Have you heard about my brother?"

"Who _hasn't_?!" I whisper-growled back. Seriously, Itachi is the black-sheep of the Uchiha family; a player and the leader of the most dangerous Underground Mob around.

"Would you like to meet him?"

"No!" I growled this time. No 'whisper' about it.

"Well then, I suggest you reconsider." And_ then _he let me go.

Shikamaru is just about to comment when there is a loud banging on my door. "SAKURA HARUNO!! OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW OR I SWEAR I'LL POST POISON POLLEN UNDER YOUR DOOR!!" I look alarmedly at Shikamaru. "_Hide!_", I quickly push him into the en-suite (because obviously the It School has this kind of luxury, surely the babies of the world's elite can't use *gasp , horror* _communal showers) _and rush to the door_. _Luckily (or not) it's just Ino.

* * *

I open the door a fraction. "Whadd'ya want?"

"I need to talk to you."

"About what."

She raises a blonde eyebrow at me; plucked, tweezed and arched to perfection. "What do _you _think?"

"Listen, I can't tell you the plan, okay?! They'll like, kill me or something."

Now she just looks plain confused. "Huh? What are you _on _about? I'm talking about Shikamaru. Now _move aside! _I'm cold. You'd better have a heater in here, Spiller." And she pushes past me into my room.

Sitting down on the bed, she crosses her legs elegantly at the ankle, her lavender coloured silk camisole and shorts catching the moonlight. "Now then, Spiller. I'm going to make you an offer you _can't _refuse." She examines her nails and then looks directly at me.

"And what might that be?" I ask, buying myself time as I think how to get rid of her.

"Well, Spiller." Her bright blue orbs are locked on my jade green ones, "Help me win Shikamaru… And I'll help you win Sasuke."

She pauses for effect.

She thinks she has me bought, doesn't she?

And true. Sasuke Uchiha may have _the _prettiest face I have ever seen.

And also true, I may be a complete sucker for pretty faces.

But I am not, as I have previously mentioned, stupid.

And, keeping my eyes locked on Ino's smug ones- I begin to laugh. "No thanks." I laugh. "I'd rather go out with Chouji."

And that's when a small, masculine chuckle comes from the en-suite. We both turn to look at it.

* * *

Ino's eyes widen.

A grin breaks across her pretty, pretty face (I am only a sucker for _male_ pretty faces). "Who's that, Spiller?"

"Nobody."

"Nobody, eh? Tell me, what's number 17 on the school rules?"

"N-no members of the opposite gender to visit dorm rooms after 7."

"And what time is it now?"

"Erm. About 11."

"Good girl. Now," She stands up. "I'd like to make a slight readjustment to our bargain." She comes and stands right in front of me, she has to look down at me being at least 5 inches taller. "You get me together with Shikamaru… and I _don't _get you kicked out of this school."

And then she glides out of my room. Shutting the door with a soft *click* as she goes.

**

* * *

**

**A/N: So, let me know what you thought; by clicking that review button. Oh, and since anonymity is super allowed on Fanfiction, I want to try something. If you actually do read the author notes- do please leave me (in a review) some of the juiciest gossip you've ever come across. Because however much we may like to deny it, everyone loves a slight bit of gossip- and who better to gossip to than someone who doesn't have a clue who the people involved are so won't tell- and who may just use it in one of her future chapters (credits to you, obviously).**

**I'll break the ice:: Today, it turned out that, over the Half Term, one of my friends' mum found the Morning After Pill in her bedroom. She didn't even know my friend HAS a boyf. Let alone that she's having... well, you know... with him. **

**Moving On::  
**

** Did anyone else get that thing where FanFiction wouldn't let you log in? Yeah. Well, Half Term's over and so I've got slightly more incentive to update this- because we all know school is where the best gossip happens. ^_* Anybody watch Grey's Anatomy? It is _the best show in the history of shows_. Missa (who is a legend. Go read her stuff if you haven't, she's iMissa) and I pretty much are agreed that McSteamy & Viper from like, episode two, are t' sex. Go watch it. Seriously. ^_^ As for me- Chemistry test and Romeo & Juliet (who were not in love, despite what most would like to believe) Presentation looms tomorrow. Kiss. Kiss. **

* * *


	3. This Is Why I'm Screwed

**The It School  
Chapter Three:: This Is Why I'm Screwed  
Written By:: Riz-I**

* * *

There are some sights a girl does _not _want to wake up to.

Fortunately, the sight I just woke up to doesn't quite qualify.

I mean, seriously. Have you _seen _Shikamaru Nara asleep? The boy doesn't even _drool._

I sneak out of bed and tip toe slyly over to the sofa where Shikamaru is sprawled. I lean over and- okay, call me forward, but whatever, it's not like _you'd _have been able to resist- kiss him softly on the lips.

I take a jump backwards and begin spluttering. _Ew… gross!! That felt like kissing my brother!! That was revolting!! _I rub my mouth furiously with my sleeve. _Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew. EW!!! _I notice I am being watched. I turn my head slightly and hurriedly hide my sleeve behind my back, grinning foolishly while doing so.

"Did you just _kiss me?_"

_**

* * *

Reasons Why I, Sakura Haruno, Am Screwed**_

_**One) I made a pact with the devil in disguise last night- and I gave her blackmail to use against me.**_

_**Two) I currently have a famous AND genius model camped out in my room which is TOTALLY against the rules and if I'm found out, I'll be expelled immediately.**_

_**Three) The famous genius model is Shikamaru Nara, a.k.a. G.M Nara, a.k.a. Genius Model Nara… a.k.a. the L Lawliet/ Light Yagami hybrid of this world. (A/N: Reference to Death Note. I 3 L.)**_

_**Four) He is glaring at me.**_

_**Five) Because he thinks I kissed him.**_

_**Six) Which technically I did.**_

_**Seven) Who cares about technically?**_

_**Eight) Judging from the way he's heading over here, clearly he does…**_

_**Nine) Should I seriously be thinking how hot he looks right now?**_

_**Ten) Naruto Uzumaki is stuck to my window with suction pads on his hands and knees.**_

_**Eleven) Ditto Sasuke Uchiha…

* * *

**Ding Dong Ladies and Gentlemen. It appears we have some window creepers. Now there are only two reasons the U Brothers would scale a window this early in the morning. Reason One: They've only just got back in from a night of non-stop partying. Or Reason Two, which, judging from the window they have come to an abrupt halt at, seems more likely: They are continuing on their mission to make Spiller join them in their quest. Better hurry boys. Looks like Sarutobi's already on his way. Remember boys and girls, this was the daily morning Gossip Coffee for all you It Schoolers. Because this is the It School—and this is where it's at. Kiss. Kiss. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K._

* * *

I pull open the window and, with the help of Shikamaru, pull the two oversized (and just as overly annoying) bug-boys inside the room. "_What _are you doing here?!"

"What's _he _doing here?" Naruto draws up to Shikamaru and jabs him in the chest.

"None of your business. He has my permission. You two on the other hand-"

"Sakura!! You don't understand. Me and the Ice-Queen over here need your-" Naruto is promptly silenced by a punch from the 'Ice Queen' who continues speaking for him.

"Sakura Haruno. I've come to give you an Ultimatum." _'Like I haven't had enough of those to last me a lifetime.' _Sasuke seems completely oblivious to my mental turmoil.

How rude.

"The Ultimatum is basically this. Go along or I'll have my father use his, _associates, _to permanently remove your father from the planet."

"And where do you intend to send him?"

"Mars." He replied, without so much as a hint of hesitation.

Sakura sweatdropped. "You can't seriously be that rich."

Naruto, rubbing his head sits up and nods. "Yeah, actually, he is."

"So why do you need to go ahead with this troublesome sounding plan anyway?" Everybody turns to look at Shikamaru who has pulled his t-shirt on and is currently leaning back into the sagging sofa.

"You wouldn't understand, Pumpkin head."

"Naruto. You mean Pineapple."

"That's what I said, Spiller."

I resist the urge to punch him. "You won't actually send my dad to Mars will you."

Sasuke pauses briefly. "No. I'll just get Dad to send him to Guantanamo Bay or something."

"You wouldn't." . Sasuke shrugs noncommittally and begins making towards the door.

"You coming, dobe?" Naruto springs up and rushes to join his friend. "Oh, and Spiller?" he adds, sticking his blond head round the door. "If you do it, we'll pay you."

"LIKE I'D DO IT FOR MONEY!!!" I scowl.

"Not even for a billion pounds?" Naruto scratches his head and grins at me. "Because seriously, if the plan works… that'll be like pocket change to us." He laughs and then leaves, slamming the door loudly behind him.

Shikamaru looks at me. "Even to an Uchiha or an Uzumaki, a billion isn't pocket change. This plan must be something pretty big"

I'm shaking but I manage to croak something out. "It is."

_

* * *

Mind if I write you notes here?_

**It's your English book. Why should I care?**

_You're a great friend. Has anyone ever told you that?_

**Many. But they were generally after something.**

_You're such a freakazoid. Hey, Shikamaru. Why exactly didn't you want people to know you're G.M Nara?_

**Because of annoying and troublesome people like the ones who It-Claimed me.**

_You don't find that flattering?_

**Of course not. Much too troublesome, especially if last night is anything to go by.**

_Well, I guess. You mean you actually heard the entire convo I had with Ino?_

**Why else would I have laughed. Though that said, the ridiculously small size of the Scholarship Student bathroom is pretty laughable.**

_My Dorm bathroom's bigger than the master bedroom of my parents' house…_

**Figures.**

_Do you want me to punch you?_

**Not particularly, no.**

_Whatever. Will you do it then?_

**Do what?**

_Don't play stupid with me, Pineapple. Or should I say, _PUMPKIN.

**Call me that again and I'll- no, hitting you would be too troublesome. I won't write back.**

_Fine. Don't. See if I care._

_Oy, Pineapple?_

_Nara?_

_Shikamaru?_

_G.M?_

_OKAY!! I'm SORRY!! PLEASE WRITE BACK!! Learning about Mitosis is KILLING me!!_

**Only if you tell me the plan those two idiots have cooked up.**

_Seriously, Pineapple, nobody uses the phrase 'cooked up' any more. And I can't tell you. I can only tell you that it involves several very illegal manoeuvres that will require Sasuke pulling all the strings he has to pull in order to prevent his daddy (or the government) from finding out._

**And how exactly is it going to make us all supremely rich?**

_It isn't. It'll only make a select few rich._

**How?**

_Magic._

And the sad thing is, I'm not even lying.

* * *

The plan Sasuke and Naruto have is little short of magic. Well, the fact that Sasuke conceded to the fact Naruto came up with the plan was magic. Not the Sasuke conceding part (though actually, that could be), but the Naruto having thought of it part. Because the plan was genius.

Pretty much infallible.

As long as I help them.

But here's the thing, they're rich. Sasuke's family owns the Militia and the Police Force as well as Uchiha Corps. Naruto's family owns the world's largest Ramen Company which makes far more than you could imagine… _They _can buy their way out of any problems this plan could have for them. Me on the other hand?

I'm here on Scholarship.

* * *

I am stashing my books away in my locker when my wrist is caught by the cold, pale wrist of somebody else. "Sakura."

"I already _told you-"_

"No. I'm going to make you understand this." He drags me over to a secluded spot along the corridor. "I stand to lose far more than you if this plan goes wrong. Don't you understand? I don't win unless you win! I'm not just in it for me."

"Yes you are."

"True. But you wind up benefitting from my benefitting."

"I refuse to help you."

Sasuke sighs. "Fine then, Spiller. I guess you leave me no choice." He pulls out his phone and begins tapping some keys on it. He finishes and then looks up at me with a smug smirk playing on his lips.

"What did you do…"

_

* * *

What is this? I would say The Fox stole his phone, but The Sex has provided evidence that it really is him. My dear It Schoolers. It appears The Sex really does need Spiller for this plan. Because guess what ladies and gents? Sakura Haruno has just be It-Claimed. Well then, Miss H. He now unofficially owns you, should you feel inclined to let him. And come on honey? How long do you think you're going to be able to resist the charms of the boy so aptly named 'The Sex'? Look forward to further updates on this latest predicament. I guess we've really proved it this time, right? This is the It School—and this is where it's at. Kiss. Kiss. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K._

* * *

"That's what I did." And he turns to walk away. Leaving a corridor of people flashing their heads from me to him back to me… then back to him.

Because even though they can only see his backside.

It's one hell of a view.

_**

* * *

Reasons Why I, Sakura Haruno, Hate Myself**_

_**Because I am a noob who is a sucker for a pretty face… and a pretty butt.**_

_**But only when they both belong to a man.**_

* * *

"Sakura!"

"What?"

"You never told me this morning."

"Told you what?"

"Why you kissed me."

Oh sugar. Ino Yamanaka has just frozen a few paces behind Shikamaru. "Heh. Heh. Heh." I chuckle nervously. "What are you talking about. What kiss? Were you having dirty dreams. Dirty boy!" I slap him on the shoulder and try to drag him away. Shikamaru shrugs out of it and looks at me confusedly. Feeling two burning eyes on the back of his neck and my pleading glances at him (and I guess being a genius doesn't hurt) he is able to realise who is behind him. "Hmm." He mutters. "I guess so."

"Sakura." Ino calls as I turn to hurry away. "Wait up." It's an order. Oh God. She's _ordering _me.

"Why is Shikamaru Nara dreaming about kissing you?" Her smile is fake and sickly sweet.

"Maybe because he likes me and not you."

Ino Yamanaka's eyes become sharp and piercing. I can feel the ice daggers she is shooting via them piercing me. "What was that, Spiller?"

"Let me bend down and lick your shoe?"

And then a miracle happens.

Ino Yamanaka laughs. Her eyes crinkle up and her mouth turns up at both corners as she lets out a delighted peal of laughter. She hurriedly composes herself. "It's a shame I have to hate you." She sneers. "Whatever. Make sure he asks me out by the end of the week and I'll see what I can do about you and the U Boys."

"Huh?"

"Well, you do like one of them, right?"

"Huh?"

"Why else would you be helping them in this plan they have going? I mean, it's not like _they _asked you!!" She giggles at the very thought.

I feel myself bristling, but Ino doesn't give me time to retaliate. "Bye bye, Loser. Remember our deal." She winks and walks away, careful to 'accidentally' kick me in the shins as she goes.

I look up and see Hinata Hyuuga making a beeline in my direction.

She does _not _look happy.

At _all._

I gulp.

"Oh no, Sakura… what have you done now?"

* * *

**A/N: I think this one's slightly shorter.**

**My GOD you guys get a lot of scandal in your lives. It actually shocked me... not to mention gave me oodles of ideas. :) **

**Love to you guys. :)  
**

**Hope you liked this chapter too. **

**Review :)  
**


	4. This Is Why We ReFlex

* * *

**The It School  
Chapter Four:: This Is Why We (Re)Flex  
Written By:: Riz-I**

* * *

Hinata comes and grabs me by the shoulders. "Stay away from Naruto."

I am actually shocked. "Huh?" I am aware that my mouth is hanging open, but I actually _do not care_. _Hinata Hyuuga _has grabbed me by the shoulders and is being assertive.

I kind of want to give her a congratulatory hug… I somehow manage to refrain.

"You hear me, Spiller! Stay away from my guy."

"You're going out with Naruto?" My mouth drops open even further. I mean, _Naruto and Hinata?! _They couldn't be more different if they _tried_. I guess opposites really do attract. I am aware that Hinata has dropped her hands from my shoulders, turned a shocking shade of scarlet and is currently twiddling her fingers again- looking adamantly at the floor, "Well, not yet."

"Hey, Hinata?"

"Yes?"

"I don't want Naruto."

"Oh, I guess. You want Sasuke. I _did _just hear Lady Luck right then." She raises a perfectly tweezed, black eyebrow. "God knows what you did to have him It-Claim you. Did you blackmail him or something?"

"Hinata? Are you feeling okay?"

"Huh? Yeah, of course. Why?"

"You're acting- weird."

"Oh. You mean I'm not stuttering all over the place like a moron?" She laughs softly; but there is something distinctly creepy about that laugh. "That's just an act I put on around Naruto. You see, I hear he likes his ladies calm and feminine."

My jaw is going to drop off in a minute---

* * *

Hinata continues speaking. "But you know, Spiller, I'm a total tomboy at heart. I grew up in the same house as _Neji_. You don't get through _that _being weak."

"But-"

"Oh yeah!" She snaps her fingers and then points at me. "I remember why I came here in the first place. Well, if you're not going to steal Naruto from me- I'll make a deal with you. Agree to whatever plan those two fools have cooked up- and use it as an excuse to subtly drop hints to Naruto that he should ask me out, 'kay?"

"Er…"

"Oh, compensation? If you get him to ask me out, I'll deposit £50,000 into your Student Account." She smiles and then holds out a slender, pale hand for me to take. "Deal?"

Hinata Hyuuga has _lavender _eyes. Did you know that?

I choose _that moment _to notice them, and as I lift my hand to point and exclaim at their odd colour, she _grabs _my hand and shakes it.

Sealing my execution notice.

* * *

As Hinata bounds away, I become aware of a presence next to me. "And yet, you're turning down a deal that could potentially make you a billionaire?"

"Nobody asked you anything."

"Well; shouldn't you be asking me something?"

"Huh? No."

"Really?" Shikamaru bends over at the waist and looks me dead in the eyes. "No deals you just made regarding me?"

"Er, no?" Then I remember. "Actually, yeah. But would you _get your face out of my way_?!" I push him away and he stumbles backwards.

"Chill out Sakura." He grumbles.

"So, since you were blatantly eavesdropping on everything, will you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Go out with Ino Yamanaka."

"What happens to Temari?"

"She can go play in traffic."

A dangerous voice answers this. "Sorry Spiller, what was that?"

Oh. Shit.

"S...s...s...sorry- it was j...j...just an expression."

"Oh yeah?" Temari looms over me, at least 8 inches taller. "I do English Lit. and Language. I don't recall the phrase 'play in traffic' ever coming up."

Shikamaru takes her by the shoulders and rotates her so that she's facing him. He sighs and then mutters something with the word 'drag' in it to himself.

"Are you a Temari groupie?" he grumbles.

"_Sorry?!"_ Temari looks astounded.

"Well, you seem to be pretty keen on her." Shikamaru leans right up close to her face and examines it carefully. "Do you swing that way? I'm pretty good at match-making you know. I could try and hook the two of you up."

Oh my GOD Nara, _what the hell are you doing?!_

He stands up straight again and tilts his head to look at the bright red girl in front of him. "Ahh. Tell Temari that Sakura meant when the green man was flashing." And with that, he put a hand on the back of my head, grinned at Temari and then began pushing me through the crowd that had gathered.

Because come on? Temari Subaku being called a lesbian?

That does _not _happen every day.

* * *

"Shikamaruuuuuuu?" I freeze.

"Who is it _now?_" he groans.

"Can I speak to you for a minute, please?" And with that, Ino links arms with him and begins dragging him away. He turns back to throw me a pleading look- which suddenly changes to one of alarm…

His eyebrows start going up and down frantically and he mouths one word before Ino drags him round a corner. "_Run!_"

God _damn _the time it takes my brain to process useful information… A pair of arms wraps around my waist and drags me into the nearest classroom before I can so much as drag enough air into my lungs to scream for help.

I take a big gulp of breath, ready to do just that. But when the arms release me and spin me around so I can see who it is- the scream dies in my throat.

* * *

"Why in the name of _arse _have _you _dragged me in here?!"

Neji smirks at me and then folds his arms. "Don't shoot the messenger." He pauses. "Uchiha pays pretty well."

"What does _that _prick want?"

"To up the priority of his proposition, apparently."

"And what proposition might that be?"

"Like I said," he scowls, "I'm just the messenger."

"Whatever. What's the message?"

"He said; when you see what's in the envelope," Neji pulls an envelope from inside a pocket in his waistcoat, "You'll do it for a million."

Hands trembling, I reach out for the envelope. "Uh-uh-uh!" Neji smirks again. "I didn't say the message was done." He leans over and brushes his lips against mine. As I stare dumbfounded, he stares back at me. Unabashed. _Totally calm in his stupid Hyuuga manner._ "What is _wrong _with you people?!"

"What do you mean? That was part of the message. It wasn't from me." He grins maliciously, licking his lips. "It was from Sasuke."

And with that, Neji throws the letter at me and walks out the door.

* * *

I open the envelope and pull out what's inside. There's a slip of paper and a folded up photograph. I read the note first.

I recognise the handwriting--- I'd been forging excuses for Games lessons in it for years.

The note said simply '_**Sakura darling, please listen to him.'**_

And the photo was one of my father; in some room, gagged, staring at a camera.

I feel my blood boiling. I scrunch up the photo and the letter and I charge through the door. "SASUKE UCHIHA!!!!!!!" I roar as I continue on my rampage. "GET OUT HERE YOU FREAKING BASTARD!!! GET OUT HERE RIGHT NOW!!"

"Chill out babe." A pale arm slips round my shoulders. "I'm already yours," he leans in close to my ear to whisper. "Remember?"

I yank his arm off my shoulders. "WHAT IS THIS?!" I demand, glaring viciously at him as I throw the photo and the note in his face.

Sasuke doesn't miss a beat. "Collateral damage." He shrugs, his face completely nonchalant.

"Let. Him. Go." I growl softly, standing on my tiptoes in order to try and look the Uchiha's eyes. I fail- I can just about look up his nose…

"Or you'll do what, eh Spiller?"

"If you don't let my dad go." I smile sweetly, causing a look of panic to flash on Sasuke's face. "I'll do this." My sickly sweet smile broadens-

And then he's rolling on the floor in agony. "Knee jerk reflex." I explain to the people who have stopped to stare at me, a look of pure shock on their faces. _Emphasis on the 'JERK', _I can't help thinking.

"You want more?" I ask. He frantically shakes his head. "You going to let him go?"

Sasuke bravely looks up and meets my gaze as he replies. "Only if you agree to join me and Naruto." Brave, I grin, but stupid.

"ARGH!!!"

"What was that, Sasuke?"

"What is going on here?!" A loud and extremely angry voice resounds through the corridor.

It's _amazing _how fast all the witnesses scattered, leaving only me and an incapacitated Sasuke in the entire length of the corridor. Well us and- "Madame Tsunade I-" Sasuke tries to explain but then collapses into a fit of painful groaning.

"Sakura Haruno." Her amber eyes glint towards me and I gulp audibly.

"Yes ma'am?"

"Would you care to explain why Mr Uchiha is currently rolling around on the floor?"

"Er sure…" Stall for time. Stall for time. Stall for time. "He was doing 'man stuff' in front of Year Seven girls so I pushed him over."

There is a period of silence as we all get over the _absolutely shockingly rubbish _lie I'd just told… then a miracle happens.

Tsunade _snickers _and then continues down the corridor. "Well done, Miss Haruno. That's the most original excuse I've heard to date." She whispers in my ear as she passes.

* * *

I crack my knuckles and look down at the groaning heap crumpled on the floor. "Well then, Uchiha. Looks like it's just me… and you."

"Actually, Miss Haruno. It's just you, Mr Uchiha- and myself."

I freeze and then spin slowly on the spot. "Headmaster Sarutobi." I gulp once again. "I can explain."

* * *

**A/N: How much would I love to have even _half _the power those It's have ;)? Kidnapping and Blackmail... Pfft. ^_***

**Anyways. Review? :)**

* * *


	5. This Is Why He Blackmails

_

* * *

_

**The It School  
Chapter Five:: This Is Why We Blackmail  
Written By:: Riz-I  
**

_

* * *

I must offer my apologies, dear It Schoolers, because I failed to report on this the second I witnessed it. But after I spill all, I'm sure you'll understand the delay. Breaking news all… Lady Lavender is not, as it would appear, as ladylike as we all think. Seems the Flower isn't the _only _one with a sadistic streak- _Blackmail,_ dear lady? I would never have thought you capable. Not that I disapprove. By all means, I applaud you. Growing a spine is most definitely something to be proud of. Moving swiftly on; some more housekeeping… Non- It Crowders may _not _make an It Claim. I know all their numbers and I'm immediately informed if their numbers change. I will _not _be fooled by anybody signing off with ludicrous pseudonyms such as "Ramenator" pretending to be The Fox. Okay? Right. If you've got it, I have some more scandal to report. Seems The Sex has attempted to step up his deal with Miss Blossom; after all, The Sex and The Screw (is it just me or is there something _distinctly _dirty about _those two _making a deal?) having hushed discussions and a _large _sum of money changing hands between them can only mean bad news. And as we all know- bad news… means _good gossip. _Following a secret meeting between Miss Blossom and The Screw behind closed doors- seems Miss Blossom confronted The Sex and got caught by not one… but _two _members of staff. I'll be watching to see how things progress- and of course, once I know- I'll be reporting straight back to all of you. Because this _is _The It School… and this is where it's at. Kiss. Kiss. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. _

* * *

As the announcement ends, Sarutobi turns away from the speakers to glare at Sasuke and I. "Well then, Miss Haruno, what is your explanation?"

"A P.E. assignment sir. Couldn't wait to get started."

Sarutobi inspects my face, I relax it as much as I can. Trying desperately not to look guilty. "And what P.E. assignment might that be?"

"Women's self defence, sir." Sarutobi glances down at the rolling, groaning heap that is Sasuke Uchiha on the floor. "Very well then. Do continue."

And he shuffles away down the corridor.

* * *

I bend down and push my hair behind my ears, leaning close towards Sasuke so that my words tickle his ear. Hey, he may have my father held hostage, but he is still _freaking hot- _and I'll be _damned _if I don't get in some sly flirting before I threaten him. "If you harm a _hair _on my father… I'll kill you." I straighten out and turn to walk away. I can hear Sasuke groan as he struggles to stand up behind me. "Might be difficult." He chokes. I swivel back to face him. Taking two strides, I am back in front of him, face tilted up so that it is glaring up at his. "What was that, nut-less?"

I sense him shift his weight, "I said," it's his turn to bring his mouth to my ear, "It might be difficult not to harm a _hair _on your father. After all; he's so hairy he even passed his moustache on to you." And before I can react, he pelts away from me. Leaving behind a folded sheet of paper.

Fuming, I stoop to pick it up.

_**Meet me in my Dorm Room at midnight tonight. If you don't , I'll have you expelled.**_

Who does he think he is, of _course _I'm not going to go meet him at his dorm room at _midnight._ After all, he just called me a _man._ Gingerly, I get out a pocket mirror and examine my top lip. "_Liar."_

* * *

"What am I _doing_? I could get _killed _for this." I grumble to myself. I am making my way to Sasuke Uchiha's Dorm Room.

Why, you may ask, if I hate the boy so much, would I do such a thing?

My response is this; what would _you _do if someone had kidnapped somebody you loved and then you went ahead and stupidly _angered him further _by kicking him somewhere no guy particularly wants to be kicked? (Well, excluding Neji Hyuuga because he is a well known masochist and probably gets a _kick out of being _kicked in his… er… area.)

And anyway, it was a personal invitation to Sasuke's dorm. Call me a shallow, stupid, immature, a moron, unbelievable… WHATEVER.

Every school has a Sasuke Uchiha (albeit a less hot, rich and powerful version of him)- and if _he _invited you to his dorm room at the sexiest hour of the night… you would _totally go._ Don't deny it.

**

* * *

Room 309. **I'm here. Deep breath in. Hold. Breathe out. *Knock*

The door opens almost before I finish the first knock and I am pulled inside.

Sasuke closes the door and locks it, slipping the key into the pocket of his tracksuit bottoms.

I notice he has neglected to pair them with a t-shirt… _Don't sit there and judge me. You would totally notice it too_.

"Take a seat." He indicates his bed. I gulp.

"I'm okay standing tha-"

"I said." His eyes flash, and in the dim light I'd almost swear they flashed a dangerous _red _colour. "Take a seat."

I sit.

* * *

"So," he begins. "You don't want to partake in my plan?"

"No."

"Despite the implications this has on the welfare of your father?"

"You wouldn't hurt him." I say. I _hope to God _I sound more assured than I feel. Sasuke's eyes narrow as he takes a small step towards me.

"And why is that?"

"Because it's illegal."

An odd kind of _snorting _noise erupts from Sasuke. "Do you honestly think _legality _has an _ounce _of influence in what I do?"

"No. But pride does." He looks at me, blatantly expecting me to continue. I stay silent and feel a brief smugness when I note the irritation crossing his face.

"And _what _is your point?"

"Well- would it not bruise your pride forwardslash ego to hurt my dad?"

"Why would it bruise my… did you seriously just _say _forwardslash?"

"Yes. Yes I did. And if you hurt dad, I would forever be able to say you were too weak to persuade me yourself. Would that not degrade your…" I give him a cursory glance and then an unimpressed smirk. For effect, you understand? "Manhood."

* * *

Suddenly, I am face up on Sasuke's bed. My arms are pinned down above my head by his hands and my waist is held in place by Sasuke's knees, one on either side.

I can't move.

Sasuke puts his face right up close to mine and then whispers tantalisingly into my ear. "Still doubting my manhood?" he smirks. It takes every ounce of willpower I have to prevent myself moving my lips the two millimetres it would take for me to be kissing him- but, reminding myself of the _FIVE YEARS _of torture Sasuke and his It Crowd cronies have put me through- I manage to somehow control myself.

But now I'm angry.

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" I shout. Alarmed, Sasuke clamps a hand over my mouth.

"What the hell do you think _you're _doing? Do you _want _to get caught?!" He unclamps my mouth.

"HELP!!! RAPE!!!" I continue muffled shouting as Sasuke lets go of my arms to try and keep any sound from escaping my mouth. But now my arms are free…

Continuing with my frantic shouting and wriggling as a distraction, I slip my hand into Sasuke's pocket. I feel around; oh no… wrong pocket. Sasuke looks down and notices where my hand is. He jumps backwards, releasing me.

We both glare at each other; breathing heavily. "Try that again and your father dies." His eyes are suddenly dangerous and I don't doubt for a second the truth of his words. "Understand?" I nod. "Now then, are you going to join the plan? Bear in mind that if you say no, tomorrow you will receive a finger in your mail." Once again, the danger in Sasuke's eyes make me certain that what he says? He means every word.

I nod.

"Good. And now to seal it."

* * *

My eyes flash upwards. Before I have a chance to blink, Sasuke bends down and scratches something into my arm. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I glance at it as he moves away, grinning. A bead of blood drips from my upper arm, exposed due to me wearing a camisole in the ridiculous heat.

He has etched a jagged 'U' into my arm.

"Now that's an Uchiha seal. If you back out on our deal, that seal gives me full licence to hunt you down and kill you. Understood?"

I don't answer.

"I said, _understood?!"_ I clench my fists and stand up.

"_Listen _Uchiha. I have had _enough _of your _shit._ I just _said _I'd do it, _okay_?! But I am _warning you_. If… no, _when _this _plan _you and Uzumaki have cooked up goes wrong, if you _dare _blame this on me. I'm going to freakin' _kill _you. Do _you _understand?!"

_

* * *

There seems to be a recent trend when it comes to disregarding the school rule about male/female dorm room visits. I'm pretty sure _midnight _is _not _an appropriate time to be meeting. After all, we at the It School fully intend to uphold our morals. Which is why Headmaster Sarutobi has been informed and is, as I speak, making his way to the corridor (well, I suppose I could tell him the rule, but I only gossip. Lady Luck is, after all, a lady. And ladies most certainly do not _snitch_) of the students who _right now _are breaching this code of conduct. Run dear lady of the night- run. And yes. I suppose in this case, lady of the night _does _have two connotations. But I guess that's all we can expect. After all, this is the It School… and this is where it's at. Kiss. Kiss. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K._

* * *

"GET OUT!!" Sasuke dives towards his door, plunges the key into the lock, unlocks it and then throws me out into the corridor. Before I can even register what's happened, he slams the door shut. "GOOD ONE UCHIHA! HOW CAN I HELP YOU IF I'M EXPELLED!?!?" The lights to the corridor flicker on. Oh _no_!! That means Sarutobi is just around the corner. Panicked, I begin running towards the fire escape.

It's too far away.

Oh no! After _all these years… _I _can't _get expelled… not _now_!! Tears of frustration threaten to spill over.

I hear a door open as I rush past and two arms grab me around the waist and pull me inside. I see the corner of Sarutobi's robe appearing round the corner as the door shuts. I hear the distant sound of knocking and doors opening.

My saviour has one arm around my waist and one hand over my eyes. "Stay quiet." He whispers.

"Who are you?"

"Do you honestly not recognise my voice?"

Despite myself, I am can't help getting irritated. "If I recognised it, would I be asking?"

I feel a low rumble as my 'saviour' laughs. It's not a laugh I recognise. "It's me, Haruno."

"_Who?_" I'm at this moment thoroughly freaked out. I jerk awkwardly and twist my head so that I can see my assailant.

"Oh. My. God."

He laughs again and then whispers against my cheek. "Good reaction."

* * *

**A/N: Cliffhanger much? Hah. Sorry to keep you all waiting so long. Yes, I know it's a rubbish excuse, but it's a totally legit one. School etc. is just CRAZY right now. Many reasons. Which I'll save you from hearing. ;) Anyway, more updates on the way VERY SOON. Last chapter of LMS is turning out to be ridiculously long. I have already given away several spoilers to people. I am such a 'tard. I just couldn't help myself ;) I am also getting round to replying to everybody's reviews that have asked questions. Or that are MANY MANY LINES OF JOYFUL JOYFUL PRAISE LONG. :) It really does make me ridiculously pleased. Anyways, write more from when Summer starts. 17th July. Look forward to it all ;) Riz ox**


	6. This Is Why We Sleepwalk

**The It School  
Chapter Six:: This Is Why We Sleepwalk  
Written By:: Riz-I**

**A/N: I apologise in advance for making Sakura such a complete... well, HO in this. But to be honest, it's so ridiculously fun to write. Hope it's fun to read as well ;)**

* * *

"KAKASHI?!" I splutter. "Is this even _legal_

?!"

He regards me closely. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Haruno. I'm saving you for a reason."

"And what might that be?"

"A student as intelligent as you must have noticed an almighty flaw in Uchiha and Uzumaki's plan." He simply continues looking at me while I look back blankly. He rolls his eyes and then sighs. He's not wearing the mask he usually wears over his mouth to antagonise us with (he always explains that it's to stop him catching our "stupid germs") which explains why I didn't recognise the laugh.

Not that Kakashi laughs all that much to begin with. He just does stupid grins.

Now that I look at him, in the dim moonlight and right up close… he's pretty hot.

_I AM SUCH A HO!!! BRAIN; QUIT IT WITH THESE SEXUAL IMPULSES DAMMIT!!! _

* * *

"In order to execute the plan, Miss Haruno, how many people do you think it will take?"

I think about it. Sasuke and Naruto can do most of it… but there is that _one _bit of it where I and only I am an absolute necessity. So… "Three?"

"No."

"Well, actually, if Sasuke and Naruto get all of the-"

"And how do you suppose they would by-pass Hyuuga Tech.'s latest security system in order to _get _to all of those?"

"Hyuuga Tech. set up the security system?" My eyes widen. Nobody, and I mean, _nobody _can get past _anything _protected by Hyuuga Tech. unless they're authorised. They have security systems and monitoring systems like you can't even _imagine_.

I did my Work Experience there in Year 10: Out of the two weeks, they gave me an entire one week to try and break into one of their prototype rooms. They gave me all the high-tech tools modern day burglars would use and told me to try and get to the safe at the back.

I couldn't even make it through the door…

* * *

"I assume either Sasuke'll be paying Neji or Naruto'll be seducing Hinata to get the codes."

"And what makes you think either Neji _or _Hinata will know?"

"Well… their dads set up Hyuuga Tech. I'm sure they could, I dunno, nab them from their dads' desks or something."

Kakashi laughed again. A whispered laugh. But a heartfelt one nonetheless. "Your naivety astounds me, Miss Haruno. The Hyuuga Twins do not _leave things lying around on their desks for their children to 'nab'._ Only people authorised to know the codes will know them. And only those authorised to be on the premises will be permitted. There is _no way _for amateurs like the 'U Boys' to get hold of _anything _Hyuuga Tech. does not want them getting hold of."

"So;" I think back to where this conversation began. "That means there's a fourth person involved… someone who _is _authorised… and since you're saving me _and _know about the plan- I assume that person must be you."

Kakashi stares at me for a fraction of a second. "No wonder you got the Scholarship."

"How the hell are _you _authorised?"

"I'm not."

"I guess that makes se- hang on. What?"

"I'm not authorised. Why would I be?"

"Because- well, you _teach _here I suppose."

"Why would that mean I'm authorised to access the school's database?"

"Because…"

"Exactly. I have no particular reason to need access to everybody's information. The only person with the ability to access the Data File Room is Headmaster Sarutobi. Before he can go in, he needs to have his fingerprints scanned and then type five different passwords in, in the correct order onto a keyboard which also scans his fingerprints. He has to have his weight measured before he leaves his office to enter the Data File Room and this is measured against his weight at the entrance to the DFR. He has to have his voice recognised. He has to have a retina scan and a body scan. There's a camera that checks behind him to make sure there's nobody within a 50 metre radius of him and after the door opens, it swings shut in 5 seconds. Giving _him _enough time to get inside, but nobody more than 50 metres away any time to follow after him. After that, it's a palm scan and then another door opens revealing a bookshelf. Every day, the 'Key' book changes and every day, Sarutobi somehow receives a message telling him which book the 'Key' has been changed to. Nobody knows how exactly the message is transmitted to him except for Sarutobi himself and Hyuuga Tech.. After he pulls the 'Key' book, there is another final retina and fingerprint scan before the bookshelf swings open and he is given access to the Data File Room. If you fail even _one portion_ of the checks, the police is immediately notified and you become inescapably trapped until they arrive. The penalty for getting caught trying to break in without authorisation is life imprisonment without trial. That may seem impossible, but there are some _extremely _powerful people at this school who would do anything to keep their family details a secret."

I gulp. "Do Sasuke and Naruto know about all this?"

"Of course." A few seconds of silence follow this reveal.

"I'm going to kill them."

* * *

I struggle against Kakashi's grip and attempt to dive for the door; sadly, despite his slender appearance, Kakashi has the strength of some sort of rabid elephant.

Is it even possible for elephants to get rabies?

"Sakura, listen to me. I may not have any access to the room- but there is one _vital _thing I _do _have easy access to."

"What's that?"

Kakashi gives a snide smirk. "Sarutobi, of course… and an unlimited supply of drugs and alcohol."

I have to ask. "Drugs?"

"Well, my dad's a coke whore- that's why his hair is so ridiculously white. But my friend… well, I say friend, I really mean stupid frube-face who I have known since childhood, Iruka, has a friend who is a doctor. I'm sure I can get my hands on some."

"Okay then."

"Not going to ask for an explanation?"

"You're going to get Sarutobi drunk with a laced drink that will make him pretty much do whatever you tell him to do and forget about it afterwards… meaning he himself will go through the security system and get you a copy of the electronic database; which contains not only a copy of _all _the paper ones, but also the more secure files that would otherwise be inaccessible?"

Kakashi looks astounded for a few seconds. Then he breaks into a perverted grin. "Smart chicks are hot. Wanna do it?" I seriously contemplate punching him for a second; but like Kakashi himself conceded; I'm a smart girl.

And smart girls don't get mad.

They get even.

* * *

I nod towards the empty bed behind us. "Sure. Why not? Is that bed free?"

Kakashi's face darkens. "For a smart girl, Sakura, you're not really all that clever. You might be joking- but it's dark… and I'm a man."

"Really? Could've fooled me." I stick my tongue out at him as he runs a hand through his so acid blonde it looks grey hair. I am suddenly pulled towards him and find my mouth pressed against his. My stomach does a loop-de-loop and then pretty much explodes. I pull back and splutter. "_What the hell was that_?!"

* * *

He winks and then presses a finger to his lips in a silencing gesture. "Nobody calls Kakashi Hatake a woman and gets away with it. We'll keep that our little secret. Smart chicks might be hot. But underage ones are just plain illegal. Kakashi Hatake may like to live on the _wild _side… but even Kakashi Hatake wouldn't go to jail over _underage _jail-bait."

I am a smart girl, yes. But honestly? My temper is uncontrollable…

Kakashi's going to have a black eye tomorrow.

* * *

Standing up, I glare at him. "Don't refer to yourself in the third person. What are you? A five year old girl?" And I storm out of the room.

As I step into the corridor, I freeze. Sarutobi has _just _walked into Sasuke's room. Thank God the boy's an excellent liar… And thank _God _I got out of there.

* * *

Once back in the safety of my own room, I collapse onto my bed. My life officially _sucks_

.

And all because I'm a stupid, insufferable, incurable ho. I have made a deal with the devil's whore (Ino), the devil in disguise (Hinata), I have been taken in by the innocent looking devil's advocate (Naruto) and I am best friends with the devil's whore's 'love' (Shikamaru), I have just been kissed by the devil's bodyguard (Kakashi)… and I have almost been raped by and forced into a deal that could potentially result in my murder with the devil himself (SASUKE FREAKIN' UCHIHA)!!

I jump about a foot in the air as my bedside table starts vibrating. After the original adrenaline rush dies down- my brain kicks into gear. Hey, even _my _brain can't be expected to be in top-notch condition at- I check the clock- 00:49.

I reach for my Blackberry Pearl and press the * key. The red light is flashing and across the bar at the top there is the SMS Message symbol with the number 1 in bold next to it.

Hmm. Guess I have one new message. Who the _hell _would be texting me at almost one in the morning? Only Shikamaru and my family have my number anyway.

_**

* * *

Sakura Haruno. I understand you have entered into a… shall we say, very lucrative deal with my stupid younger brother and his idiot accomplice/ best friend. I do hope you understand that any plan concocted by those buffoons is sure to end disastrously. I am not joking, Miss Haruno. Unfortunately, I speak from experience. My bedroom wall still contains a 'sexy' painting of Anko Mitarashi in a mesh tank top and a ludicrous orange mini skirt from when those two morons decided to do a 60-Minute-Makeover on my room. I would therefore like to extend a hand of friendship to you in this, your time of need. And assure you that my 'services' are at your disposal whenever you require them. Yours, Itachi Uchiha, Boss of Yakuza Uchiha. P.S. Might I remind you to delete this message as soon as you have received it? And please don't bother to save my number. This is an untraceable phone I shall be disposing of immediately. If you need to contact me, ask Sasuke.**_

* * *

Oh. And the devil's older brother just offered me his 'services' which my _perverted _brain has decided to take the _complete _wrong way.

Jeez. I am such a ho.

No wonder my life is so incredibly _screwed!

* * *

_


	7. This Is Why We Play The Game

**The It School  
Chapter Seven:: This Is Why We Play The Game  
Written By:: Riz-I**

**A/N: First and foremost, you guys kindofsortofREALLY have to thank Rtotheen for giving me the inspiration for this chapter :) I give her full credit for the Sakura-meets-up-with-Itachi situation AND the Sakura-finally-meets-Gaara situation :') Hope you like what I did with it bebz ;)**

**Results of the collab contest is up on my Userpage. Thank you EVERYONE who entered. You were all fantastic :) And just because I didn't choose yours does not mean you aren't AMAZINGLY GOOD AT WRITING!! Because you ARE!! It's just my writing style and yours were probably too different. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy the collabs that are coming soon. Yes... collabs. :') Plural... the ideas that the top two pitched to me were just TOO ABSOLUTELY FANTASTICALLY AMAZING to ignore.  
**

* * *

My eyes flicker open as my alarm clock starts blaring on my dressing table. Yes- I do keep my alarm clock far enough away that I have to physically get up and _walk over _to it to turn it off.

Yes. That is because I am a lazy so and so and if I left it next to my head I'd smack it off and then go back to sleep.

I drink the glass of water I always keep next to my alarm clock and finally, I am awake. I glance at the clock. 6:59am. "Damnit!" I rush over to my desk and grab my iPod. Flicking it off 'Hold' I begin scrolling furiously through the _A_'s and am almost through the _B_'s when I notice the second hand of my clock on the 10… I realise there is no way I'm going to get to _DBSK _in time so begin hurriedly scrolling back through the _B_'s and click on _BIG BANG_. I jab the button twice and just as the second hand reaches the 12…

_Good morning It Schoo-_

I scroll feverishly until it's on full volume and Daesung's DAMN SEXY voice is completely blocking out Lady Luck's _babble_.

"Take that party down OH!" I sing, grinning as I make my way over to the bathroom to get ready. "… MOTTO MOVIN… GROOVIN…HIKASHITA BODY!! Say B.I.G. to the BANG " I continue singing as I put toothpaste on my brush. "Gara Gara Gara Go oretachi no WAY LALALALAAALAAA!!" I spit just in time to catch the line "Don't stop now JUMP JUMP!!" And bounce backwards, crashing into my shower and banging my elbow. "Ow." I mumble.

This song is just too… exciting? I change the song to the slower (but my personal favourite) '_Everything_' and slip the iPod into my pyjama bottoms' pocket and return to brushing my teeth. I let Taeyang's voice wash over me, trying _desperately _not to let my mind drift back to the events of yesterday night.

Because I do not need a breakdown today… It's my favourite day of the week after Saturday- It's Wednesday.

* * *

I have Registration followed by double English, then a double free period followed by Lunch. And then just double Chemistry in the afternoon after which I can go home i.e. back to the dorms. So pretty much a day where I can doss off. Chemistry is with Asuma who just gives us a load of sheets and asks us to ask him if we don't understand something (I always understand everything and leave him to get on smoking at the front so you could say I am one of his favourites… unlike Naruto who will ask him the _same thing over and over again until Asuma is forced to throw a pen at the wall directly next to Naruto's head to shut him the hell up- _The scariest thing is… the pen went through the wall…). But the best thing about it is this; Sasuke, Ino and Hinata all do Business Studies which means they have Chemistry in the other block, the one with Shikamaru… And English? Even though they're _all _in my English group; we have Tsunade for English- ensuring anybody who talks out of turn is-literally- kicked out with their laptop shoved up their ass.

* * *

After finishing the rest of my daily morning bathroom rituals (by which I mean showering, cleansing, toning and moisturising) I walk out of the bathroom and, now that the daily morning shit has been spread, I slot my iPod into the speakers and, switching the song to _Sorry, Sorry_ by Super Junior, I begin getting ready.

Hair dried and straightened. Underwear on… La Senza really does _amazing _sets. And now to choose what uniform to wear today.

Yes- even though we're in Sixth Form the It School requires we wear uniform.

However, the rules are pretty lax, so it's ok. I might not be in the It Crowd- but I certainly do not abandon fashion.

In case you haven't realised- I'm pretty shallow.

I put on black tights and the black box-pleat school skirt. I pull on the black, long sleeved version of the school blouse (top button left undone, of course). It has white rimming on the cuffs and hem. As the school _must _be distinguished from the other schools in the country; the only non-negotiable part of the uniform is the waistcoat- white and nipped in at the waist for girls and white and pretty much like a dinner suit waistcoat for guys. After deciding to leave the waistcoat unbuttoned and then rolling the sleeves of my shirt up to my elbows, I put on a load of bracelets on my left wrist and my watch on the right, I add an iconic Topshop leaf-necklace around my neck and, slipping my feet into my black ballet flats: I decide I'm ready.

It is _way _too hot to wear the blazer.

I slip my bag over my shoulder and then unlock my door.

I know what I have to do, and I can solemnly swear that I do _not _want to do it. But I have to… I pull out my Blackberry and open the contact list.

* * *

There. Just above **Shikamaru Nara**… **Sasuke Uchiha**

.

**Sakura**: Sasuke, I need your brother's number.

**Sasuke: **I would give it to you, but he would kill me.

**Sakura:** If you don't give it 2 _me _I will cut ur balls off.

**Sasuke:** I would rather that than be dead.

**Sakura: **I will tell every1the plan.

**Sasuke: **07456342765

**Sakura:** Thx

**

* * *

Sakura: **We need 2 meet.

**Itachi**: I've told you before, Kisame, getting a new number does _not _mean I won't know who you are. We are not meeting. I was _experimenting _back then… I am now confident in my sexual orientation.

**Itachi: **Which, in case you were wondering, is heterosexual.

**Sakura: **Who the hell is Kisame?

**Itachi: **Who the bloody _tits _is this?

**Sakura**: Sakura

**Itachi: **Did Sasuke give you my number?

**Sakura:** Yes

**

* * *

Itachi: **I'm going to _kill _you.

**Sasuke: **wtf

**

* * *

Itachi: **How may I be of assistance?

**Sakura: **Could you kill your little brother for me? That would help.

**Itachi: **I think that can be arranged. Doing business with you may be more pleasure than I originally anticipated.

**Sakura: **We need to discuss this 'business' somewhere… and soon.

**Itachi: **How about right now at the Starbucks five minutes from your school.

**Sakura: **Is that even possible?

**Itachi: **If you're worried about missing lessons, Kakashi owes me quite a few favours. I could call one in.

**Sakura: **No, I mean- shouldn't you be out ordering Hits on people from… Italy… or something?

**Itachi: **I am perfectly capable of 'ordering Hits on people' from London…

**Sakura: **Right then, meet you there. ^_^

**

* * *

Itachi: **I may not kill you after all…

**Sasuke: **WTF?!

* * *

I have made a decision.

I am going to pass A-Level Biology and use it to get a government grant to let me research the Uchiha family's genes.

Because there has _got _to be some sort of _freak gene _that makes them _this unbelievably pretty_.

See, when I walked in, I was wondering how on Earth I'd know who Itachi was. All _anybody _knows about him is that he's incredibly dangerous and probably better looking than the average male.

Talk about understatement of the _century. _Itachi Uchiha is… There are no words other than UTTER PERFECTION.

I've never really believed in 'auras' and stuff like that, and I've always thought that being dazzled by someone is something that only happens in shoujo mangas- but that was before I walked into Starbucks this morning and was almost _blinded _by Itachi.

Sitting at a table.

Looking at a cappuccino.

Glittering.

Yes. He was (and still _is_) glittering.

And he's wearing a leather jacket. He's wearing rumpled jeans, one of those white loose but fitted tops that are half-way between jumper and t-shirt… and a black leather jacket.

It should be illegal for hot guys to wear leather jackets. On the grounds that it makes it impossible for women within viewing distance of them to breathe.

I sit down across from the vision in a leather jacket… and he _smiles _at me.

Possibly the hottest guy on the planet + leather jacket + Kim Beoum-esque smile= Licence for Sakura Haruno's brain to go on holiday to Idiotville.

Say something smart, Haruno- USE that schoarship earning brain of yours to _dazzle _him with you wit and intelligence... "I like eggs."

* * *

He gives a small snort of laughter. "I should have planned ahead and got you some... I just got you this. It'll have to do for now." He winks and pushes the cappuccino across the table to me. "Drink up, babe. We've got lots to discuss."

* * *

Cappuccinos are the drink from hell. Seriously. _How _can anybody _possibly _be expected to drink it without giving themselves a foam moustache? "Here's a spoon for the frothy stuff." Itachi smiles and passes the spoon across to me. He sighs, "You know, I once got rejected because I had a foam moustache from a cappuccino. I didn't take it too personally… I had just ordered the death of her brother."

Is it wrong of me to admit that at this moment in time I find his evil streak the height of sexy?

If the continuing stupidity of my brain is anything to go by- yes…

"Moustaches usually make guys look like paedophiles."

He gives another snort of laughter and then winks at me. "I'll be sure to let my father know." I work hard not to choke on the large gulp of scalding hot cappuccino I have just taken.

* * *

"Now then, Haruno. Down to business. What exactly is it that my brother's got you doing."

I finish my minor choking fit and wait for a second until I am sure that my face isn't red anymore before beginning. Despite his apparent friendliness- there is a _reason _Itachi Uchiha has such a dangerous reputation.

After all- there's no smoke without fire… unless you have a smoke machine… but that doesn't count.

"I can't tell you anything you don't already know."

"Let's assume I know everything."

"But what if you don't?"

"Then that would make me a liar. Do I look like a liar to you?"

"Quite frankly, yes."

"Haruno… you do know I could kill you with the several guns I have concealed on my person."

"And I could just yell 'Rape!' and you'd get arrested."

"Touché."

"I need your help to get me out of this _mess _your moron of a little brother has gotten me into."

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"_Why not?!_"

"Because the plan's already been set into motion."

"But- it can't have, I-"

"You." He cuts me off. "Are but a pawn in this game. The bigger players had already begun moving a _long _time ago. But, even in chess- the pawns are important… And without you, the game is lost."

"So _what _are we meeting for?"

"I'm here to give you advice, babe, on how to make _your _moves simpler."

* * *

I look into the eyes which seem to be mocking me in the same way his younger brother's do. "No thanks. I'd rather not owe someone like _you _anything." My tone was supposed to come out clipped, but that just sounded _harsh_. To my surprise, however, Itachi smiles.

"Ouch. That was harsh." He leans back and puts something in his mouth. He motions with his index and middle finger that I should come closer to him. I lean my head closer to him over the table. He smiles when his face is millimetres from mine and whispers "Don't swallow."

And then I am kissing him. Oh my _God_! I feel like I'm about to _explode_. What _is _this?!

* * *

The moment is ruined as I suddenly feel something smooth and hard on my tongue and immediately recoil. I spit it out into my hand. "What the hell is this?" I look up to ask. But Itachi is gone. I turn hurriedly, just in time to see him disappearing through the door. He gives me one last smile and then disappears into the London crowd.

* * *

I look once again at the object in my hand. It looks… kind of like a test tube. Yes. There is no doubt about it. This is definitely a tiny test tube. And there is something inside it.

I pull out the minute stopper and tip the tube upside down. A tiny rolled up sheet of paper falls out. I put the test tube in my pocket and unroll the tiny scroll.

_**Haruno, when push comes to shove, have you ever thought to pull? **_

I can feel my blood starting to boil. "You _stupid little _prick! I come here and meet you, a _criminal _who I should be _turning in_… and you give me _this_. DAMNIT!!!" I smack the table, causing the old lady on the table beside me to turn and give me an astonished look. I smile and bow my head slightly before making a swift escape.

Oh damn. I check my watch. Registration would have finished by now and everyone would be well through First Period. I might just be able to make it back in time to catch Second Period.

* * *

Once in school, I'm hurrying towards Tsunade's room. I think I _might _just make it for Second Period… I hope to God she buys my 'it's-that-time-of-the-month-and-I-had-to-go-buy-emergency-supplies-because-I-lack-friends-who-would-let-me-borrow-theirs' excuse.

"Oy! You!"

"Wha-?!" I am suddenly pulled into a side corridor by a blonde bomb… ready and set to explode.

"Where were you?"

"I don't think that's any of your business. Let me _go_."

"Where's Shikamaru?"

"He'll be in his lesson. Now let _go_!"

"He's not. I just came to look for the two of you. Are you _honestly _telling me to believe you don't know where he is?"

"Yes. Go try his Dorm Room or something. Oh, by the way, your mascara's smudged." Ino's hands immediately fly to her pocket to search for her mirror; leaving me free to run.

Which I do.

* * *

I duck into a dark classroom and stay quiet as I watch through the key-hole as Ino runs past.

"Phew." I breathe a sigh of relief as I turn around.

I suppose the sight in front of me is one most people would scream at. But I am too shocked for more than a tiny yelp to escape my throat.

"She's seen us. Shit. What do we do?"

"Do we really have a choice?"

"I say we kill her."

"Gaara. That's not really an option."

"Temari. You're too compassionate. It doesn't pay."

"I suppose you'd rather I be like you?"

"It would be preferable, yes."

"Kankuro you fat lump, _mediate_."

"Hmm- I say we have no choice but to explain."

They got that right…

Because they are going to need to give me a _pretty _good explanation as to why they appear to be attempting to shove a dead body into the filing cabinet…

* * *

**A/N: I am an EPIC FAIL for leaving you with such a cliffhanger yet _again_. But I'll try and make the next chapter worth it ;)**


	8. This Is How We Negotiate

**The It School**

**Chapter Eight:: This Is How We Negotiate  
Riz-I**

* * *

**A/N: ALEENA WHERE ARE YOU! I had to write the chapter myself because you DISAPPEARED. *sniff***

**For all you HAZZA POTPOT (Harry Potter to all normal people on the planet) fans… In light of the almost completion of Workplace I have begun a Harry Potter Next Generation fic, it's a Romance Comedy focusing on Scorpius and Rose because those two are ridiculously fun to write as.**

**Check it out and let me know whether you enjoy it. Go to my profile and check out:: 'Shiver Me Electric'  
**

**But first… here's The It School.**

* * *

Okay.

Let me just clarify.

The only reason I'm not running for help is because I recognise these people.

The three Subaku siblings are infamous:

* * *

Temari Subaku- Resident It Schooler and as far as I knew, has already been offered a Sports Scholarship place at a University most normal people (i.e. _me_) would have to chew an arm and a leg off to go to. She is famous for being ridiculously fast and incredibly strong. The person who can beat her records in track, cross country, shot, hurdles and javelin is yet to be born.

Kankuro Subaku- The middle child. He's the most laid back of the three, friendly and intelligent. But it is these traits that make him particularly dangerous- he is incredibly manipulative and I have seen him control others like puppets. He is extremely gifted at Design & Technology and was responsible for the Carving Exhibition last year that got our school international attention.

Gaara Subaku- The youngest of the three. Incredibly witty. There is absolutely no way you could win an argument against him. He has an ultimate defence system built into him that allows him to come up with instant put-downs that internally annihilate anybody who even tries. Look at him the wrong way and he'll kill you.

* * *

Temari. Kankuro. Gaara.

Three people you don't want to run into in a well-lit crowded area, never mind a dark deserted classroom.

With a dead person.

Who is half stuffed in a filing cabinet while the unstuffed half is hanging limply over the edge and bleeding grossly all over the floor.

"I don't suppose you'd believe this is a puppet and just leave?"

"No." _Way to go MORALITY! Where were you on the day I agreed to go out with Naruto and got myself into this mess in the first place?  
_Before I can backtrack and say that of course I'd believe it was a puppet and never mention it to anyone… ever… Gaara is standing in front of me, glaring down at me with his dark eyes. He has the _hugest _under-eye bags. If he'd been anyone else I would've recommended some chilled tea-bags.

"You just threw away your last lifeline. Now I'm going to have to kil- OW! What the fu-"

"I apologise for my little brother. He has a tendency to get carried away."

"Temari. If you _ever _hit me again, I'll kill you too."

"Oh yeah? And if you kill me, who're you going to call to help you clean up the mess?" Gaara glares at her but says nothing. "Kankuro- chairs." She commands.

* * *

Kankuro pulls over two chairs, Temari takes one and places it in front of me, pointing at it to indicate that I should sit. When I do, she takes a seat on the other one. Kankuro leans back against a table wearing a bored smirk and Gaara stands, arms folded, to the side. Continuing to glare at me with the eyes of a hawk with his mouth twisted in an angry scowl.

"What do we have to give you to keep your mouth shut?"

"Nothing! This is _wrong_! I have to tell someo-"

"Don't pretend with me…" Temari raises an eyebrow. "Everybody has their price. Now. How much will it take?" She begins pulling out a chequebook.

I can't help it.

I start laughing.

* * *

Kankuro and Temari look shocked. Gaara looks as though he wants to rip my head off… I try to control myself- but I can't help it. The laughs keep tripping over each other to get out of my mouth. "What the hell are you _laughing _at?" Temari demands.

"You people," I say between bouts of hysterical laughter, "All think money makes the," more laughter "World go round."

"Your point being?" Kankuro looks genuinely curious. As though what I've just said genuinely intrigues him.

"It might shock you to hear this- but there are other ways to persuade someone to do something. Ways that are much more effective."

A sarcastic voice suddenly rises from beside me. "For example, reminding you that there are two more drawers in that filing cabinet?" I turn my head to face Gaara.

I see his deadly serious face and I can't help but roll my eyes. "No you idiot. I meant something that won't get you into even more shit than you're in... But that would benefit us both."

"Is there such a thing in this situation?"

I smile and turn back to look Temari straight in the eyes.

"Yes. We do a trade. You give me something of equal value of me keeping my mouth shut." Before Gaara can cut me off, I continue, "If you can explain who that is," I indicate towards the filing cabinet, "And why she is currently half stuffed into a filing cabinet... As well as find out Headmaster Sarutobi's exact weight... I'll walk out of this room and continue running from Ino as though my life depended on it... Which it probably does."

* * *

There is a moment of shocked silence. Gaara breaks it. "Sasaame Fuuma. She stalked me here from my hometown. Apparently we were friends when we were younger and Kankuro told her I was going to marry her when we turned 17. She tried to hug me, I hit her with a sand-clock. She fell stumbled backwards and hit her head on the desk. She was too heavy for me to dispose of by myself." He shrugs and nods his head towards his older siblings. "So I called in back up." He walks over to the door and holds it open for me. He smirks. "As for the other thing, I neither want to know nor do I care about your reasons. However, I shall inform you as soon as I acquire the information."

Wordlessly, I walk out and dazedly head towards my next lesson.

* * *

I sidle into English and take a seat in a seat as far away from everybody as possible. Ignoring the death glares being thrown at me from several of my classmates as well as Tsunade...

I am so engrossed in _not _noticing everyone noticing me, that I _almost_ don't notice when, on his way to the front to write the answer to the question Tsunade has just written up on the board (_Why is Thackeray's novel 'Vanity Fair' subtitled 'The novel without a hero'? _), Gaara slips a folded scrap of paper onto my desk.

Hurriedly looking up to make sure Tsunade is watching Gaara writing on the board, I unfold the note.

**59.2kg**

I don't even want to know how he found out so fast...

Then suddenly:

_Don't think that tiny exchange of literature wasn't spotted, Miss Cherry and Sandy-Eyed. Seems one of you is being very carefully monitored and I have photographic evidence. Don't go thinking I won't find out what it says. And then I wouldn't count on my silence after that… After all, this is the It School. And this is where it's at. Kiss. Kiss. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K._

Have I ever mentioned how much I want to _strangle _that nosy hobgoblin?


	9. This Is How To Break The Law

**The It School  
This Is How We Break The Law  
Riz-I **

**

* * *

A/N: Whoa. This one took a while. It's a little bit of inglorious filler. The next chapter will probably (_probably) _have more romantic stuff in it. This one is just satisfying my love of riddles. :) It also moved the storyline along a bit since I want to finish it the heck up already.**

* * *

"Do you know the weight?"

No matter how quickly I tried to escape, Naruto and Sasuke (both at the _back _of the classroom) managed to beat me out of the classroom. "Yes."

"Then we go now."

"_Now_? It's a little… _soon _don't you think?"

"It's our only window of opportunity. Sarutobi's holding a whole school Assembly during the Free so Lady Luck won't be there watching us. We'll be marked down as Absent, but I've told Kakashi to deal with it. If we miss this chance… It's over."

"But Kakashi said he would get the files from inside the Office himself. Why are we _suddenly _not doing that anymore?

"The _idiot_ put rohypnol in too… Sarutobi's doing an Assembly on the dangers of date rape and binge drinking- and he's given up drinking for the next year. We've had to rethink our strategy."

"Okay. Fine. Let's go."

* * *

As the three of us begin making our way through the crowd of people heading towards the Assembly Hall, Sasuke pulls out his phone and begins barking into it.

"_You're sure?"_

"_40 seconds? That's all you can give me? What the hell is that? How are we supposed to get through everything in 40 seconds?"_

"_Yes I _know _it's Hyuuga Tech. That's why we asked _you_. You're sure it's only 40 seconds? WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT MIGHT ACTUALLY BE TWELVE?" _

"_And we get out through...? Yeah. Okay. Right. We're here."_

"Is that Shino?" Naruto looks round nervously, making sure the corridor is indeed deserted.

"Yeah. He says we have 40 seconds." There is more than a hint of frustration in his tone. He runs his hands through his hair and I feel my loins bursting into flame at the dishevelled effect. _WHOA THERE_. _Now is _not _the time_.

"Sakura-chi, how much do you weigh?"

"You don't just _ask _a girl how much she _weighs_!"

Naruto lets out an exasperated groan. "Okay, okay! How much does Sarutobi weigh?" I hand him the piece of paper from Gaara. "Yes! Sasuke works out like a madman to make up for being so inferior to Itachi. OWWW!" He rubs the patch of head where Sasuke had just thumped him, "So he's roughly that weight. Everything's ago."

Sasuke's phone buzzes into life and he jabs down on the 'Answer' button. "So everything but the 5 passwords, weight and fingerprint scan are off? Yeah. Okay. When do we go?"

The corridor is so silent, even Naruto and I clearly heard the word as Shino says it. "NOW!"

* * *

Sasuke immediately steps onto the slightly raised slab in front of the heavy-set wooden door and a tiny, electronic pad slides out of the door. "Naruto! Hand!" Naruto procures from his bag a fake hand that makes me recoil a little at how realistic it looks. Sasuke presses it down on the pad and we watch as a blue light scans it. The pad then displays a series of keys. "Naruto! Passwords!"

"Brennan." Sasuke's fingers fly over the keypad.

"Gideon."

"Reid. Spelt 'ei' not 'ee'."

"Garcia."

"Grissom. That's it. What the hell is wrong Sarutobi? He just picked a load of random surnames for passwords?"

As the door lets out a soft hydraulic hiss and begins to swing open, Sasuke and I both throw Naruto disgusted looks. "That's like… the _best _crime solving line-up imaginable. Brennan from Bones. Gideon, Reid and Garcia from Criminal Minds. And Grissom from CSI."

"They're not real." He retorts, as we once more glance around nervously and then slip inside, pushing the door shut behind us.

"Just shut up and never speak to me again." Sasuke threatens. He gives me a small nod of approval. Weirdly, my stomach flips.

Okay, it's not so weird. We all know how little it takes for the shallow little skank inside me to take over...

* * *

Once inside, we find the room empty and undecorated save for a large computer on a very simple, glass and metal table at the back, in front of which was a single grey stool. "Wow. Sarutobi sure knows how to make a place feel homey." Naruto's voice has a hint of the hysterical about it.

I cannot _believe _we're in here. I cannot _believe _how many laws I have broken today… And the one I'm _about _to break is the _worst_. Okay- maybe covering up Sasame's murder was worse, but this is pretty close. "How am I supposed to do this is about ten seconds?"

"Huh?" Sasuke raises an eyebrow and looks at me as though I'm completely stupid. "You have as much time as you need. They don't put cameras in here and the forty seconds was just for the door's security features. We couldn't figure out how to forge an iris scan without actually _stealing _Sarutobi's eyeballs-"

"I told him to get Itachi to do it…"

"So we got Shino and his dad to take it down while we got in. For a price."

Naruto grins. "But that's not going to be a problem after today, is it?" I know he's like, a criminal and will probably land me in jail- but if we're in a mixed prison and I get to see his cute-ass smile everyday- It might be worth it.

Wait. What the hell is wrong with me? I am _so unbelievably shallow_! Who would consider going to _jail _just to see _Naruto _smile. My heart belongs to… Okay. Nobody.

"_Sakura!_"

"Huh?" I mumble dazedly.

"_Get to work_!"

* * *

The computer is already on and I only have to shake the mouse to bring the screen to life. "This is wasting _so _much energy." I complain.

"Just shut up and do what you're supposed to."

I click my way through a few things and finally arrive at the Folder we need. "Whoa."

On the screen are thousands upon thousands of folders, each labelled with the name of every single student ever to pass through these halls. I scroll down and find an entire backlog of the world's most powerful people. The entire Uchiha clan are Legacies here. Even _Uchiha, _**Itachi** has a designated file.

I click into the little Search box in the top right corner and type in what we need. _Ne,_ **Sai**. The file appears almost instantly.

I double click.

* * *

**SECURITY FEATURE ACTIVATED.**

* * *

I type the instructions as Sasuke reads them from a sheet of paper.

* * *

**USERNAME: **

**PASSWORD:** ilikesexychicks_43va

* * *

"Seriously?" I raise an eyebrow as I type in the ridiculous password.

"Well, he was a student here. So he probably set it up then. Whatever. It's not like it matters."

**

* * *

**

**HYUUGA-ABURAME SECURITY TECHNOLOGY**

**

* * *

**

**I begin wars and yet I end sorrow.**

**Without me, there is no wisdom but I lie at the heart of dimwits.**

**I am always in water, but never in oceans.**

* * *

"It's a freshwater fish!"

I give Naruto an incredulous look. "Seriously, Naruto? _Seriously?_"

* * *

**W**

* * *

I hit enter.

* * *

**PASSWORD ACCEPTED.**

**

* * *

**

**Only one colour but not one size.**

**Stuck at the bottom yet easily flies.**

**Present in sun but never in rain.**

**Does no harm.**

**Feels no pain.**

**

* * *

**

**Shadow**

**

* * *

**

**PASSWORD ACCEPTED.**

**

* * *

What was the name of the man who invented the computer language COBOL and coined the term 'bug' in reference to devices used to listen in on private conversations?**

* * *

"What the…? That's not even a riddle. How the _hell _is anyone supposed to know that?" Naruto sounds outraged, and he's right. But I'm not just 'anyone'. I'm Sakura Haruno. And I _know _the answer to this.

But there's something wrong with the question.

"The person who invented COBOL was called Grace Murray Hopper."

"Wow. He must have had a hard time brushing off the gay jokes."

"That's the thing. _He _was a _she._"

"Huh?"

Suddenly, Sasuke leans over me and begins typing frenziedly.

* * *

**It was a woman**

**

* * *

**

PASSWORD ACCEPTED.

* * *

**Joe and Brenda are married. Joe pushes Brenda to edge over. Brenda shoves Joe over the edge. How do they save their marriage?**

* * *

I am stumped.

Like… honestly. _What_?

"So, what's the answer?"

"I _don't know_."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"I _mean, _Sasuke, _that I have absolutely no freaking idea._"

This announcement is greeted by deafening silence.

"Shino said if we get it wrong, even once, the entire system as well the room goes into lockdown."

More silence.

Sasuke exhales exasperatedly and begins pacing. Naruto leans over me and reads the question again. "Naruto! Quit _breathing _down my neck."

He backs away.

Something about the question is niggling the back of my brain. I know that usually, I would remember. I always do… But _too much shit has happened today_.

Wait.

Think backwards.

English. Gaara. Ino. _Itachi_.

The little capsule he so creatively passed on to me!

_When push comes to shove, have you ever thought to _PULL?

* * *

**Pull**

**

* * *

**

**PASSWORD ACCEPTED.**

**

* * *

**

**ACCESS GRANTED.**

**

* * *

**

**SUBJECT: SAI NE**

* * *

"I'm in!" The U-Brothers rush over to the screen.

"YES!" Naruto does a delighted fist pump.

What Sasuke does is the most shocking. He pulls me out of my chair, wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me into a toe-curling kiss. "I _love _you, Haruno. Now come on. Download it and let's get the heck up out of here."

"As delightful as that sounds, I think I may have to stop you."

All three of us freeze and turn around on the spot. Naruto comically frozen mid-pump. Tsunade stands between us and the door.

"There is _no way _you weigh less than 60kg." I burble.

Her face darkens instantly. Oh shit.

That was _not _the right thing to say…

* * *

**A/N: Review :) P.S. For those of you who don't get the 'push, shove, pull' one, it's based on something a friend of mine once said to me that after she 'pulled' and made out with a random stranger at a party and her boyfriend found out, he became more interested in her than ever before and quit trying to push her away. I'm NOT SAYING that's the way to go, and her and her boyfriend split up soon after... but the riddle was basically hinting at an affair. :')**


	10. This Is Where It All Comes Out

**The It School  
This Is Where It All Comes Out  
riz-i **

* * *

**A/N: ****Just to clarify, Oxbridge is a shorthand way of referring to Oxford and Cambridge Universities. You can only apply to one or the other, not both (unless, for some inexplicable reason, you play the Organ really well. In which case you CAN apply to both.). So when somebody is an 'Oxbridge Applicant' it means they want to go to **_**either **_**Oxford or Cambridge. There's more complex stuff where you have to pick a particular College of the university (I want to go to either Christ's or Emmanuel of Cambridge, waiting for the Open Days to make a final decision) because the Collegiate system means there are random Colleges of the University spread throughout the cities. It's pretty simple. Just… not when you describe it in an Author's Note. ENJOY! ;) **

* * *

'_Oh my. It seems like the game's over guys. You know, as much as I'd love to see the fallout if your dastardly plan succeeded- there's just no way I could risk any potential consequences to myself. You know how it goes: always take care of number one. And let's face it. I _am _number one. __Don't you ever forget people: This is the It School… And this is where it's at. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss.'_

We stand in shocked silence as Lady Douchebag's last syllables reverberate through the air.

* * *

"Fortunately for you, Miss Haruno, I will choose to ignore your welcoming comment. Because I can guarantee you the repercussions for such accusations are grounds for suspension."

I can't help wondering if the woman is just completely batshit or if this is her "Over-Keen-English-Teacher" idea of building suspense.

"Now. It would appear that the three of you are skipping assembly; I hope you understand just how serious that is. What are you going to do if the exam timetables are given out? Are you intending on just _skipping your exams_? Huh? I thought you wanted to study Medicine, Haruno. As for you; Uchiha, Uzumaki… I thought the two of _you_ were going to go down the nepotistic route and take over your fathers' businesses. _How _do you intend to do that if you _don't _have any A-Levels. Haruno, I thought _YOU _wanted to go to Oxbridge. You _do _know they don't accept percentages under 90% in ANYTHING for Medics. Even _you _have to actually _sit _the exam to get that mark."

Naruto turns to me, slackjawed, and mouths "_Is she serious?_" I glance over at Sasuke. His mouth too is slightly open in shock as Tsunade continues her rant. We all turn back to face her as she takes a deep inhale.

"Now. I'm going to _leave _this room and I will give you precisely _THREE MINUTES _to get your _asses out of here_. Do you understand?"

None of us speak. I don't think, in this second, any of us _can. _"I said _do you understand_!"

I nod dumbly and hear a rough "Yeah." Come from Sasuke.

"Good."

She spins round and glides out of the room.

* * *

I am frozen to the spot. What the _hell _just happened. I hear furious typing and clicking occurring and spin to see Sasuke continuing with the download. "Sasuke, what the _titting hell do you think you're doing_? We need to _get out_!"

"No. We don't." He responds calmly as the **DOWNLOAD IN PROGRESS** bar appears on the screen. "She ranted about us skipping assembly despite the obvious illegality of what we're doing here. She left the room. And most importantly… she gave us three minutes." I glance over at the progress metre. It was 78% done and we still had over 2 minutes left to leave.

"You guys. Doesn't that mean… Tsunade just let us do this? Even though Lady Luck probably told her what we're up to so that she'd come and stop us?"

Sasuke nods. "Which means she'll probably-"

"Ask for some sort of compensation." I finish and then sigh. Sasuke looks up at me from his kneeling position on the floor.

Naruto suddenly points at the screen. "It's done! Now let's go, go, gooo!" Sasuke grabs the USB out from its port, clicks shut all of the windows and we all run to the bookshelf at the back. "This is so cliché." I comment, as Sasuke reaches up, locates and pulls the fifth book from the right on the third shelf down.

"Don't you think that makes it so much more exciting, Sakura-chi." Naruto grins.

"No, Naruto. No I don't." We step through and the bookshelf/secret door shifts back into position.

* * *

There are two reasons this wasn't our entrance strategy: firstly, nobody knows where the other end is; for all we know, we're going to end up emerging from behind Sarutobi's podium on stage in front of the entire school. And secondly- although you can get out from the inside, there's no way of getting in from the outside: I push at the door and feel around on the shelf for some sort of nodule just to make sure.

"Oy Sakura, you coming or what?" Naruto calls from further ahead in the corridor.

As we walk through the dark corridor, an unexpected feeling suddenly bubbles up through me and suddenly, inexplicably; I burst out into uncontrollable laughter. There's a moment of silence and my laughter is joined by the rumble of Naruto's. A feeling of breathlessness almost sucker punches me when a third- deep and exhilarated- laugh joins in. I know without a doubt that the same delirious, relieved emotions driving my laughter are responsible for those of Naruto and Sasuke. It's in this state that the three of us begin running. I stumble and grab the hands of both boys and run ahead, dragging the two of them behind me. We run, still laughing, up an incline and push up and emerge one by one into what appears to be a deserted classroom.

"WOW!" Naruto whoops as we all lie down on the floor of the classroom and breathe deeply. "That was… amazing!"

I pant in response. "I can't believe we got away with that. What do we do now?"

Sasuke stands up and moves over to sit on the edge of one of the tables. "I already told you. Sai's file is the key to unlocking everything."

I sit up too, "I know, but _why_? You haven't exactly been forthcoming with the details, have you?"

"This isn't a normal school."

"I know. I mean, we pretty much just went down the Witch's Hump and came out in Hogsmeade."

"What?"

"If you haven't read Harry Potter, I don't think this relationship's going to work."

"Of course I've _read it_, it just had _absolutely no relevance _to what we were talking about so-"

"I'm going to have to stop you there. Harry Potter is _always _relevant."

Sasuke stares at me as if I've gone completely insane. "Do you _want _to hear the next step or not?"

"Whatever."

"Like I was saying. This school isn't normal. And these aren't any normal files. There is a _reason_ these files are so well protected."

Naruto snorted from the flower a few feet away.

Ignoring him, Sasuke continued. "These contain information on every aspect of a student's life from where their parents met to where they took their first steps. If we go through this file; we learn _everything _about Sai there is to know."

"I _got that bit_. What I don't understand is why _Sai_. I mean, surely if we were going to go for money, it'd be more useful to steal, I don't know, one of the Hyuugas? Aren't they responsible for security?"

"Here's the thing I left out…"

"Oh?"

* * *

"Sasuke, do you want me to tell it from here?"

Sasuke glares over at Naruto but then sighs and nods.

"I have this thing with Hinata right?"

Pfft. I know only _too _well. "Yeah."

"And basically, a few months ago we were at one of Yamanaka's parties. And you know how _crazy _those things get. Do you remember that time Tenten did-"

"Get _on _with it, dobe." Sasuke growled.

I had _heard _of how wild Ino's parties were- hadn't actually personally experienced them though. Obviously.

"Anyway, so anyway, someone spiked Hinata's drink- nobody knows who did it because obviously Neji would've strangled them- and she ended up getting with Sai."

If I was drinking something, it would've been spat all over the place. "_WHAT_?"

"Whatever. It wasn't anything major." Naruto shrugs. "But Sai thought it was. And he got all obsessed with Hinata and kept doing these crazy things to try and win her over; like painting a mural on her bedroom wall of the two of them having sex when her family went on holiday and stuff like that. It was _really creepy_. Anyway, he finally tried to win her over by telling her about this secret underground organisation he's a part of… An organisation working on producing a Universal Hacker."

"What?"

"It's basically this thing which can hack _anything _from _anywhere_. We could sit in Sasuke's dorm and transfer trillions of pounds out of peoples' bank accounts and the best bit is- it's completely untraceable. For anybody attempting to find out what happened- it would literally be as though the money just _disappeared_."

"Sai thought Hinata would find it cool that he's smart enough to be asked to be recruited onto this team. Either that, or he thought it'd make him seem all bad-ass. Poor boy doesn't even know that you can't _become _bad-ass. We badasses are just _born _that way."

"Naruto, for _God's _sake."

"The point is- what Sai _wouldn't _tell Hinata is who else is a part of this organisation, where it is, where the Hacker is or you know- _any _useful details whatsoever. This file contains his life. If we're going to find out where it is- it's going to be using this. After we do that… well… we already explained why we need you, didn't we?"

I briefly flashback to their detailed explanation of why I and _only _I could be their pauper of choice in this whole debacle. As well as the _insane_ amount of money they had promised me if I complied.

I nod.

* * *

Sasuke stands up again, pushing the table scraping back as he straightens out. "Right. I'm going to go. We'll reconvene in Sakura's Dorm at midnight."

"How very mysterious of you." I scoff. He doesn't reply, just turns and walks out of the room.

* * *

I make to follow him but am stopped as Naruto grabs my arm. "What is it, Naruto?"

"Sakura-chan... I just… I wanted to say I was thinking last night about how mean we've always been to you over the years."

I sigh and roll my eyes. "Don't worry Naruto. I'm over it." He ignores me and carries on.

"I always ignored you because you're poor but my parents raised me better than that- or at least, they did when they weren't at work. I really should've made more of an effort."

"Like I said, I'm _over_ it."

"You _shouldn't _be though." And here he does something I never, _ever _thought he would. He tugs on my arm, causing me to stumble forward and land in his arm in a hug. "I'm so _so _sorry. Even now we're still just using you. And the thing is, after this is all over, if it works; we'll go back to ignoring you and making your life miserable."

"And if it doesn't, you expect me to just take the fall for it. Don't you?" I pull myself out of the hug and look up into Naruto's bright blue eyes. They're full of genuine remorse and, inexplicably, I find myself _absolutely furious_.

As I take a step back; I begin to shake. My hands clench into tight fists and I begin taking fast shallow breaths through my mouth.

"-dare you?" I whisper.

"Pardon?"

"How _dare_ you?" My fury boils over. "How _bloody dare you _apologise to me? You think that's enough? DO YOU? DO YOU HONESTLY THINK I'LL FORGIVE YOU JUST LIKE THAT? THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU SAY SORRY, EVERYTHING WILL BE ALRIGHT? NO! No. It won't." I take a deep breath to physically calm myself down. "I'm doing this for the money and because you threatened my family. You will _never _understand and you will _never, ever _be a good person. So don't you _dare _try to make yourself feel better about the way you and your _friends _have treated me over the years. You've all made my life _hell _and if through this plan of yours I can take my revenge, don't you _for a second _think I won't. I _hate _you. _I. Hate. You. _And that will _never _change."

I storm out of the room to find Sasuke hovering just outside the door. "And that goes _double _for you… you _butthead_!"

* * *

I wander around listlessly until I find a Girls' Toilet and slip inside. After a quick search to ensure I'm alone, I burst into tears. All the anger, hurt and pain that's been building up over the years has finally come out.

I've finally gotten over my shallow attraction to their outer beauty (okay, this bit may be temporary, but _still_) and fear of their power (also more than likely a temporary state) and have stood up for myself...

And (no matter how long this lasts) it feels brilliant.

I cry until I hear the first bell go and quickly wipe my tears and look in the mirror to make sure my eyeliner hasn't smeared down my cheek. It hasn't. Taking another deep breath, I open the door to the bathroom and am about to step out when I find myself looking up into the black eyes of Sasuke Uchiha. Wordlessly, he pushes me back into the bathroom. "This is a girls only bathroom, Sasuke."

"Why don't you remember?" He asks me.

"What?"

"_Why _don't you remember?" He repeats.

"Putting emphasis on the first word isn't going to _change anything_."

And then, unexpectedly; he takes both my hands in his, leans down and brushes his lips across mine. And then he kisses them again. It's completely chaste and lasts less than a second. His fingers still interlocked with mine, he locks his gaze on mine and then says one word. "Remember."

He pulls away and walks out. As the door swings shut behind him, I collapse to my knees.

What... What was that?


	11. This Is When Reality Sets In

****The It School  
Chapter Eleven:: This Is When Reality Sinks In  
Riz-I

* * *

**A/N: Erm... yeah so Interview at Cambridge University on Tuesday. So much excitement it's unreal. I have also recently gotten into a Star Plus drama (I'm so ashamed lolbutnotreally) called Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon which is so, _so_addictive. They're so ridiculous that at first you're like "Wtf am I watching?" but then you watch a few episodes and you're like "OMG WHY AM I SO ADDICTED TO SOMETHING SO SPECTACULARLY SHIT?" And I'm not going to lie... Barun Sobti's face certainly doesn't hurt... If you Google him, all I can say he is far more telegenic than he is photogenic. You can watch English subtitled episodes on 2ndrealone's Youtube channel going back to almost the beginning of the series.**

* * *

Okay, I _say _I collapsed to my knees- but let's be serious here.

I'm in a freaking public toilet. I wouldn't put it past the cleaners to, instead of cleaning the floors, drop flesh-eating bacteria onto them.

I basically just kind of wobble my way over to the door and try to take in what Sasuke just said. I'm half expecting to find an empty corridor when I walk out, but instead see that he is halfway down it.

If this were a drama or some sappy romance novel, I would have allowed him to continue on his way and turn the corner while I stood here pondering the meaning of his words- possibly allowing a lone tear to roll attractively down my cheek.

As it is, I'm a pissed off, confused and hormonal teenager. "OY SASUKE!"

* * *

He stops and turns around. His face is a complete blank and instead of responding, he just raises a perfectly groomed eyebrow.

I've heard him swear down to others that it's natural.

But nobody's eyebrows are that perfect naturally...

If I didn't get mine threaded once a month they'd look like tiny voles had committed solvent-suicide and accidentally glued themselves up there.

* * *

"What the hell were you just on about? Did you date-rape me and make me promise something at a Year 7 disco?"

The corner of Sasuke's lip pulls up into a disbelieving sneer as he begins walking back towards me. "Not at all. Unlike you, I'm not ugly enough to need to resort to rohypnol when I want to sleep with someone."

"Well okay then. Is this where you reveal that we are in fact childhood friends but I was once kidnapped by mistake when we swapped clothes and the experience was so traumatic I blanked it out and forgot all about you? But during our brief but beautiful friendship, I promised when we grew up I'd marry you?"

Sasuke just stares bemusedly back at me. "Were you dropped on your head as a baby?"

"Sasuke, you've been little less than a massive bumder to me since the day we met so you'll have to excuse me if I'm unconvinced by your unfounded claims."

His bemused face fell back into one of absolute incomprehension. "You know what, I was just messing with you, okay? But you're such a psycho it's not even worth it." He turns to walk away but I grab his arm.

"Ladies first."

If he thinks I'm a psycho, then a psycho is precisely what I'll be. Instead of walking away like a normal person, I hum and do the dance to Chori Bazari from the film Love Aaj Kal. I take a risk and look back at Sasuke and, just before he notices I'm looking at him, I swear I see the shadow of a genuine smile on his face.

* * *

'_Well, congratulations boys and girl. I should have predicted that if anybody could weasel their way round authority it would be the U-Brothers. Though I doubt either of you would've been able to pull it off without help from our little Cherry Blossom. Despite my slight concern, the fallout from your actions will be nothing if not interesting... And we all know how much I love it when things are kept interesting. We all do. Because this is the It School... And this is where it's at. 0-7-7-L-A-D-Y-L-U-C-K. Kiss. Kiss.'_

* * *

I quite literally cannot believe nobody has hunted down and punched this stupid bitch in the face yet.

* * *

"Psst."

I heard that. But I've really had far too much excitement today already. I kind of just want to get to class.

"Pssst. Sakura! Sakura! Come here!"

I adamantly refuse to acknowledge the whisperer.

"SAKURA!"

"WHAT?" I swing round. "Oh. It's you. What are you doing here... actually... how did you even get in?"

"I pretended to give Sasuke a hug when we went over to Mum and Dad's for Sunday Lunch and stole his ID. That's beside the point right now. I take it from that ogre's announcement that Part One went well?"

"Er- not well exactly. But we pulled it off." I run a hand anxiously through my hair as I look round to make sure we're not being eavesdropped on. "Somehow. Your hint was pretty helpful."

"Good. I just wanted to make sure."

"It's nice you care about Sasuke this much."

Itachi raises an eyebrow and smirks. He leans over and whispers softly in my ear, "Who said anything about Sasuke?"

I gulp and mentally urge myself not to blush as I give a short chuckle, "Naruto's fine too. I'm sure he'll be happy to learn of your concern for his wellbeing."

Itachi straightens, laughing. He's in a perfectly tailored black suit today with a deep maroon shirt, open just enough to reveal the tiny paper fan he has tattooed a few inches beneath his collarbone. Probably some mobster insignia.

It's hot.

"You're fun. You should marry Sasuke."

"I would quite literally rather eat my own foot."

Itachi winks "Ahh but Haruno, what fun would it be if I just _had_you? If I stole you from Sasuke- not only would I have you but I'd get to piss off my dearest little brother to boot."

I blink.

"You need some urgent counseling man."

Itachi shrugs and begins walking away, throwing me a casual wave over his shoulder as he calls back "Can't argue with that."

I seriously hope the entire Uchiha family isn't as messed up as the Uchiha Brothers seem to be.

* * *

I reach the door to my class, but just as I'm about to put my hand on the door knob to step inside... I reconsider.

I know these people have made my life a living hell for as long as I can remember. Hate would be too light a word to sufficiently express the detest I feel towards them and I want them punished.

I do...

But the series of actions Sasuke, Naruto and I set in motion today could potentially devastate not just them- but their families as well and God alone knows how many other people whose livelihoods depend on their families' professions for jobs.

I'm suddenly overcome with an emotional tsunami of guilt and regret at the unconsidered repercussions of what we'd just done and were about to continue doing.

I turn away and run back to my dorm room. It take a second for me to register that my door isn't locked.

* * *

I _always _lock my door.

* * *

An arm suddenly clamps me around my stomach and another winds tightly around my neck. "Listen, Spiller. I've been incredibly nice to you thus far, but my hospitality has its limits. If you and the Moron Brothers so much as _dare_touch a _penny_of what rightfully belongs to my family, I will not hesitate to kill you. Nobody will miss you and even if they did, nobody would ever be able to link it to me. Nod if you understand."

I nod.

"Good. Now, be a good girl and count backwards from 1000. If you turn around before you get to 1, not only will I know- but I will _end_you. Got it?"

I nod again.

"Remember Spiller. Be careful who you mess with around here. Because this is the It School... And this is where it's at. _Kiss.__Kiss._"

I drop to the floor gasping as my assailant suddenly releases me. "1000, 999, 998, 997..." I groan pathetically as I desperately try to draw air into my lungs and allow my windpipe to decompress.

I feel a sudden burning in the base of my throat. I barely make it to the bathroom before I begin throwing up into the toilet. As I finish retching, I look up- involuntary tears trickling down my cheeks. I hiccup suddenly as I take in the sight before me.

* * *

"What the actual hell are you doing sitting in my bathtub? And why are you naked?"


End file.
